KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A physician practicing in the Kansas City, Kansas, region pleaded guilty last Friday to receiving substantial kickbacks amounting to hundreds of thousands of dollars. In exchange, he ordered medically unwarranted healthcare services for numerous patients.
Dr. Scott Taggart Roethle, aged 47, admitted guilt to health care fraud at the U.S. District Court located in St. Louis.
He confessed that between 2017 and 2020, he colluded with healthcare firms and individuals to prescribe unneeded durable medical supplies, pain ointments, and genetic testing for numerous patients, receiving over $500,000 in bribes as a result.
Dr. Roethle entered into agreements with several healthcare firms to work as an online physician. He prescribed medical treatments for individuals without examining them or understanding their true health requirements. Dr. Roethle had never established a previous doctor-patient connection with those who sought telehealth services, and he acknowledged that he offered no subsequent care following the issuance of these medical orders.
Typically, Dr. Roethle received around $30 for every fake order he placed. He confessed to obtaining payments totaling $674,000 from five different firms. Additionally, he acknowledged that Medicare had disbursed at least $1.5 million based on his dishonest requests.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office estimates that the total financial damage resulting from the healthcare fraud ranges from $7 million to $9.5 million.
During the period when he committed his crimes, Dr. Roethle held licenses to practice medicine in 22 states and mainly operated as an anesthesiologist.
His sentence is scheduled for July 17.
The investigation was carried out by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, the Department of Defense Office ofInspector General, and the FBI.
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