Virginia doctor sentenced to 59 years in prison for performing unnecessary surgeries on patients
A Virginia doctor was sentenced to 59 years in prison after performing irreversible hysterectomies, improper sterilizations and other medically unnecessary surgeries on his patients, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
In November of 2019, Javaid Perwaiz was charged with health care fraud and making false statements relating to health care matters.
The case built against Perwaiz, now 71, comes from various patient complaints. One patient had her fallopian tubes removed without her consent, resulting in being unable to conceive naturally. After undergoing an unauthorized hysterectomy, another patient said her bladder was perforated, leading to a six-day hospital stay.
Javaid Perwaiz, now 71, was sentenced to 59 years in prison after performing irreversible hysterectomies, improper sterilizations, and other medically unnecessary surgeries on his patients, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. (Photo: Western Tidewater Regional Jail)
The FBI said it started investigating in September 2018 after receiving a tip from a hospital employee who believed Perwaiz was “performing unnecessary surgeries on unsuspecting patients,’’ including “annual cleanouts.’’
‘Unnecessary surgeries on unsuspecting patients’: Virginia doctor jailed, charged with health care fraud
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Perwaiz was an obstetrician-gynecologist in Chesapeake, Virginia since the 1980s. From 2010 to 2019, Perwaiz defrauded health insurance programs, resulting in about $20.8 million in losses to health care insurers. He often would trick his patients into having unnecessary surgeries by telling them they had cancer or needed the surgery to avoid cancer.
A 2019 complaint filed in the U.S. District Court shows how often Perwaiz operated on his patients. From January 2014 to August 2018, Perwaiz operated on 40% of his Medicaid beneficiaries, or a total of 510 patients, according to the complaint. Out of those, 42% had at least two surgeries.
Raj Parekh, acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, said the surgeries caused irreversible damage to victims and praised them for speaking out in court.
“In many instances, the defendant shattered their ability to have children by using fear to remove organs from their bodies that he had no right to take. Despite having to endure immeasurable physical and emotional pain, the victims showed resilience, strength and courage by speaking out and sharing their stories to hold the defendant accountable for his heinous crimes,” Parekh said in the U.S. Department of Justice release.
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