An orthopedic surgeon in Alaska was cleared of allegations of fraud, overscheduling and performing unnecessary surgeries, but was penalized for his documentation practices, the Daily News-Miner reported March 16.
The Alaska Medical Board and a state administrative judge found most complaints against Timothy Carey, DO, owner of McKinley Orthopedics, Sports Medicine and Spine, unfounded, the report said.
Dr. Carey faced allegations that he often scheduled 12 to 14 cases daily when his actual average was nine. Some complainants also alleged that he performed unnecessary procedures and committed Medicaid and Medicare fraud. While a licensing board found his documentation process was subpar, the other allegations were unfounded.
Dr. Carey was ordered to pay a civil fine and serve two years of probation. He will also be required to submit quarterly reports and complete at least 20 hours of training related to documentation. Dr. Carey will also partner with two other orthopedic surgeons who will review some of his patients.
Dr. Carey told the publication that while he isn’t worried about losing his license, patients still ask him about the investigation.
“It’s not behind me,” Carey said. “It still shows up in the database, it still shows up on Google searches, it still shows up everywhere. I’ll still be able to take care of my patients, but one to two patients a day will ask about the [December 2023 News-Miner] article. That story gets old and cumbersome. That’s the hard part.”
