Pittsburgh radiologist hit with 88-count indictment from federal grand jury for illegally dispensing Vicodin, healthcare fraud

Omar A. Almusa, a 45-year-old Pittsburgh radiologist, has been indicted by a federal grand jury for unlawfully dispensing control substances and healthcare fraud.

According to the 88-count indictment, Almusa “conspired to create and submit unlawful prescriptions for Vicodin and then unlawfully dispensed those control substances to other persons without a legitimate medical purpose,” according to a statement from the United States Department of Justice. He also submitted fraudulent claims to the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) health plan to pay for the Vicodin.

Almusa faces a maximum prison sentence of 20 years and a $1 million fine for each count of unlawfully dispensing Schedule II controlled substances, a maximum prison sentence of 10 years and a $1 million fine for one count of conspiracy to unlawfully dispense a Schedule II controlled substance and a maximum prison sentence of 10 years and a $250,000 fine for one count of healthcare fraud.

“One of the main causes of our nation’s drug crisis is the diversion of prescription painkillers,” Attorney General Jeff Sessions said in the statement. “That’s why, last summer, I sent a dozen of our top federal prosecutors to focus solely on the problem of opioid-related health care fraud where the drug epidemic was at its worst--including Western Pennsylvania. Within three months, they were already issuing indictments. Now we take the next step of indicting a defendant who allegedly spent three years distributing massive quantities of Vicodin on an illegal and fraudulent basis with no medical justification whatsoever. By shutting off the flow of these potentially addictive pills to our streets, this case, and the dozens more we will prosecute across the country, can save lives.”