Former Pasadena Doctor Sentenced in Medicare, Medi-Cal Fraud Scheme

A former doctor from Pasadena who was convicted for being part of a scheme to defraud Medicare and Medi-Cal for end-of-life services was sentenced to four years in jail Monday.

Boyao Huang, 43, was one of two doctors convicted in the scheme in a two-week trial in May. Huang must also pay a part of approximately $1.3 million in restitution to the federal government, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

In the scheme, Huang was found guilty of falsely certifying records stating Medicare patients were terminally ill, when most of them were not. His actions qualified the patients for hospice care. The scheme was related to the now-defunct Covina-based California Hospice Care.

In the scheme, which took place from March 2009 to June 2013, California Hospice submitted some $8.8 million in fraudulent bills to Medicare and Medi-Cal for hospice services, and the public health programs paid out roughly $7.4 million.