PHOENIX — A Peoria doctor has been sentenced to two years in a Tucson prison for health care fraud, according to the Arizona U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Dr. Linh Cao Nguyen, 51, has defrauded medical programs including Medicare, Tricare, AHCCCS, Blue Cross Blue Shield, and United Healthcare for years. Mr. Nguyen pleaded guilty to health care fraud on March 19, 2024.
Authorities said Nguyen intentionally submitted thousands of false claims and falsified patient records to avoid arrest.
Mr. Nguyen claimed that the doctor was the treatment provider, but in reality the services were provided by other providers, including nurses, social workers, unqualified psychology residents, and wound care nurses.
When medical services are billed as if they were provided by a doctor, the doctor ends up overcharging for the amount he or she is owed. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Arizona, Nguyen defrauded insurance companies out of approximately $3.7 million and was ordered to pay more than $1.1 million in restitution to some insurance companies as part of his sentence.
