Feds charge Fort Worth, Southlake doctors in healthcare fraud takedown
Southlake and Fort Worth doctors were among more than a dozen North Texas defendants who were charged with various fraud-related crimes on Tuesday.
The charges were part of a massive nationwide healthcare fraud takedown that included charges against 455 defendants, including 90 doctors and other licensed medical professionals, according to federal prosecutors. The defendants are charged in schemes involving more than $6.5 billion in false claims, the prosecutors said.
Dr. James Lou Carlisle Jr. of Southlake was charged with two others, Dr. Olubayo Idowu, 75, of Desoto, and Vaughn Anthony Brozek, 56, of Hurst. According to prosecutors, Carlisle and Idowu joined Brozek, a nurse practitioner, in conspiring “to unlawfully enrich themselves from 2020 until at least 2023 by accepting kickbacks and bribes for patient EEG testing that was medically unnecessary.”
“My office is committed to protecting victims and combating fraud against the United States wherever it is found,” United States Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Ryan Raybould said in a statement. “Today’s announcement sends a message that no quarter will be given to fraudsters and those who prey on vulnerable members of our community in the Northern District of Texas. It also serves as a reminder that medical professionals who violate the trust society places in them and exploit Americans for personal enrichment will be aggressively pursued and held accountable.”
A Fort Worth doctor was also charged as part of the takedown in the Southern District of Florida. Dr. Jason Finkelstein was charged with conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud and wire fraud in connection with an $89 million cardiovascular testing scheme.
According to the indictment, Finkelstein, a board-certified cardiologist licensed to practice in 48 states, was the medical director of a cardiovascular testing company that performed tests on student athletes throughout the U.S.
Finkelstein allegedly conspired to use two companies that he owned to submit $89 million in false and fraudulent claims to insurance companies for cardiovascular tests conducted by the company he was director of.
According to prosecutors, the claims also incorrectly stated that Finkelstein was the reviewing provider for the tests when he was actually signing and approving the test results within a few seconds of accessing the tests. In 2024, Finkelstein signed the test of one student athlete as normal even though some of the results indicated abnormalities. Prosecutors said the student died 24 days later from sudden cardiac arrest while exercising with his basketball team.
The defendants could not be reached for comment Thursday.
