Doctor Convicted In Extensive Opioid And Healthcare Fraud Scheme, Faces Prison

India-West Staff Reporter

BENSALEM, PA – Dr. Neil K. Anand, a 48-year-old Pennsylvania physician, faces a statutory maximum penalty up to 130 years in federal prison after being convicted by a jury for his leading role in a sprawling conspiracy involving illegal opioid distribution and multi-million dollar healthcare fraud.

The guilty verdict, delivered in federal court on April 16, follows a trial that exposed Anand’s elaborate scheme to exploit patients and defraud federal and private healthcare programs. According to prosecutors, Anand required patients to accept “Goody Bags” filled with medically unnecessary prescription drugs in order to obtain controlled substances like oxycodone.

These prescriptions were filled at pharmacies Anand owned, and the fraudulent costs were billed to Medicare, the Office of Personnel Management, Independence Blue Cross, and Anthem, totaling more than $2.3 million.

Anand was also found guilty of conspiring to distribute oxycodone outside the bounds of legitimate medical practice. Witnesses testified that unlicensed interns were allowed to write prescriptions on blank forms pre-signed by Anand. In one particularly damning example, he prescribed over 20,000 oxycodone pills to just nine patients.

The jury also heard evidence that Anand attempted to hide $1.2 million in illegal profits after learning he was under federal investigation, transferring the funds into an account held in his father’s name, allegedly for his minor daughter.

His convictions include conspiracy to commit healthcare and wire fraud, multiple counts of healthcare fraud, unlawful monetary transactions, money laundering, and conspiracy to distribute controlled substances. Sentencing is set for August 19.