Doctor agrees to pay $1.95M for fraud allegations

SARASOTA — Sarasota physician Dr. Arthur Portnow agreed to pay $1.95 million to resolve allegations that he and his practice violated the False Claims Act by seeking reimbursement for medically unnecessary ultrasound tests performed on Medicare beneficiaries.

Portnow is the owner and operator of Apple Medical Group. According to a statement from the Tampa office of acting U.S. Attorney W. Stephen Muldrow, Portnow submitted fraudulent claims to Medicare for carotid ultrasounds; lower extremity arterial ultrasounds; abdominal aortic ultrasounds; renal and renal artery ultrasounds and echocardiograms from August 2009 through August 2017.

The government also alleges Portnow falsified patient records to justify unnecessary ultrasounds. The statement says Portnow and his practice received hundreds of thousands of dollars as a result of the testing.