A Tonawanda physician has been sentenced for failing to report his involvement in a multimillion-dollar prescription fraud scheme.
U.S. Attorney Michael DiGiacomo announced that 65-year-old Dr. William Stephan was sentenced to one year of probation and 100 hours of community service after pleading guilty to misprision of a felony—knowingly concealing a crime without reporting it.
Prosecutors say that between April 2015 and early 2016, Stephan signed dozens of pre-filled prescriptions for compounded medications presented by Erik Berg, without reviewing the patients’ needs or the medications’ formulas. None of the 19 individuals were his actual patients.
The prescriptions—which averaged more than $16,000 each—were refilled over 500 times and resulted in more than $8.7 million in health insurance reimbursements.
Stephan also misled investigators during a 2016 audit by falsely stating he had written the prescriptions himself. Authorities say the medications were prescribed primarily to generate maximum insurance payouts rather than address real medical needs.
The case was investigated by the FBI. Berg and co-conspirator Michael Luehrsen have also been convicted and are awaiting sentencing. A third individual, Scott Trapp, was previously sentenced.
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