An Arizona doctor was sentenced Friday for orchestrating a scheme that defrauded the state’s Medicaid program of over $36.5 million in a six-month period, officials announced.
According to the Arizona Attorney General’s Office, Irfan Fazil accepted a plea deal to serve 7.5 years in the Arizona Department of Corrections, followed by seven years on probation.
On September 4, he was found guilty of fraudulent schemes and artifices, illegal control of an enterprise, theft, and the illegal procurement of a dangerous drug.
In addition to his prison sentence, Fazil consented to renounce his medical license and Drug Enforcement Administration registration, as well as forfeit all of his assets, which included real estate, medical facilities, vehicles, several aircraft, jewelry, luxury handbags, US dollars, cryptocurrencies, and gold bars. He will also make $36,542,901.45 in restitution to the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System.
“Dr. Fazil abused his position as a physician to steal more than $36 million from a taxpayer funded program that exists to provide health care to Arizona’s most vulnerable residents,” Attorney General Kris Mayes said in a news release. “He billed for thousands of X-rays and other medical treatments that could not possibly have been performed and treated AHCCCS as his personal bank account. My office will continue to aggressively prosecute fraud in government programs to protect tax dollars.”
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