Mid-Atlantic imaging entrepreneur convicted of fatal fraud-related crimes

The owner of a Maryland imaging center is facing a possible life sentence for two counts of healthcare fraud, death resulting, as well as multi-year sentences for other charges.

The owner is Rafael Chikvashvili and his business was Alpha Diagnostics in the Baltimore suburb of Owings Mills.

On Feb. 17, a federal jury found Chikvashvili guilty of numerous charges, the most serious of which involved patients who had their chest x-rays interpreted by nonphysician staffers at Chikvashvili’s behest, then died due to lack of proper diagnosis—they had congestive heart failure—and due to their subsequent placement in a nursing home rather than an acute-care setting.

According to a news release from the U.S. attorney’s office in Baltimore, Chikvashvili holds a PhD in mathematics but was never a physician.

The office says the 67-year-old fraudster, who had been in business with Alpha Diagnostics since 1993, forged physicians’ signatures on radiology reports, submitted claims on services never provided, committed identity theft and engaged in other deceptions en route to bilking Medicare and Medicaid of more than $7.5 million.

Alpha Diagnostics operated in four states plus the District of Columbia, primarily providing x-ray services but also offering ultrasound and cardiologic exams, according to the release.

The attorney’s office further reports that another Alpha Diagnostics executive, Timothy Emeigh, 51, a radiologic technologist serving as VP of operations, previously pleaded guilty to healthcare fraud and is awaiting sentencing.

Prosecutors cited as an example of the pair’s misdoings an instance in which Chikvashvili ordered Emeigh to file false radiology reports even while Emeigh was taking a break from the action.

“According to witness testimony, in June 2012, Emeigh traveled to Jamaica for a vacation,” the release states. “The evidence showed that Chikvashvili directed Emeigh, through text messages and telephone calls, to view medical images using his personal laptop in his hotel room and then draft false physician interpretation reports. Alpha Diagnostics personnel subsequently submitted false claims to Medicare for these images and fraudulent physician reports.”

The Baltimore Sun reports that Chikvashvili has indicated through his attorney that he is “disappointed with the verdict, but he respects the process and will pursue an appeal.”