Gary Wisner, MD, was sentenced to seven years in prison for defrauding Medicare and administering unnecessary X-rays to his patients, the California Department of Justice said Sept. 6.
Dr. Wisner was convicted of 10 felony counts of healthcare insurance fraud in June and was sentenced to prison by the Sacramento Superior Court on Sept. 2, according to a news release.
From 2012 to 2016, Dr. Wisner defrauded Medi-Cal and Medicare programs through the "excessive and medically unjustifiable" X-rays. In November 2016, authorities were notified of suspected fraud by Dr. Wisner.
He operated a clinic in Lodi, Calif., and had 26,000 patients under his care. An investigation found he performed X-rays on multiple parts of patients' bodies regardless if it was related to their care. Over four years, 10 patients had hundreds of unnecessary X-rays at the clinic, the release said.
"Gary Wisner used both his patients and state resources to line his own pockets," Attorney General Rob Bonta said in the release. "Due to his dishonest behavior, patients at his clinic had to undergo unnecessary medical tests so he could steal from the state’s Medi-Cal funds."
Dr. Wisner is also the subject of a criminal complaint from the San Joaquin County District Attorney’s Office for workers' compensation fraud.