California surgeon pleads guilty in sober living fraud case
LOS ANGELES (AP) — A surgeon and his girlfriend have pleaded guilty in an insurance fraud scheme that involved recruiting patients at Southern California sober living homes to undergo unnecessary surgeries and other procedures.
Randy Rosen ran Wellness Wave, a surgical center in Beverly Hills, and girlfriend Liza Vismanos owned Lotus Laboratories, a toxicology lab in Los Alamitos.
Prosecutors said they billed health insurance companies some $676 million for medical procedures and tests and collected millions in reimbursements, according to court documents obtained by the Orange County Register.
Rosen pleaded guilty last week to several counts of submitting fraudulent insurance claims with an aggravated white collar crime enhancement, while scores of other charges were dismissed, the Register reported Monday. He faces 10 years behind bars, but will get credit for two years he has already served.
Vismanos pleaded guilty to insurance fraud and had dozens of charges dismissed.
Prosecutors said the pair hired “body brokers” to find and pay sober living facility patients to have unnecessary tests, cortisone shots and implants of Naltrexone, a drug that can reduce cravings for opioids and alcohol.
Insurance companies were then billed for the procedures, authorities said.
The used the money to fund a lavish lifestyle that included a $3.2 million mansion with views of the Pacific Ocean complete with lap pool and wine cellar, according to court documents.
