Texas doctor who falsely diagnosed healthy patients to fund lavish lifestyle in $118M scheme is sentenced to 10 years in prison

A Texas doctor who falsely diagnosed his healthy patients to fund his lavish lifestyle with private jets and luxury sports cars as part of a $118 million health care scheme was sentenced to a decade behind bars.Rheumatologist Jorge Zamora-Quezada defrauded patients and insurance companies by purposefully diagnosing people with rheumatoid arthritis despite them not having the life-long and incurable condition.Zamora-Quezada, 68, masterminded the scheme out of his Mission, Texas office with the help of staffers who were abused and threatened by his status, the Department of Justice said.The disgraced health care provider led patients to believe they were suffering from chronic illnesses and they would pay unnecessary and costly treatments and testing that included a variety of injections, infusions, x-rays, MRIs, and other proceduresThe regimens included the administration of toxic medications that had potentially harmful and even deadly side effects.Zamora-Quezada also falsified medical records of his patients to secure insurance funds from providers by falsifying medical.He defrauded $28 million from Medicare, Medicaid, TRICARE, and Blue Cross Blue Shield.Other doctors in the Rio Grande Valley testified against Zamora-Quezada during the 25-day trial, revealing the surprising findings when they treated hundreds of patients, believing they had RA.“For most (patients) it was obvious that they did not have rheumatoid arthritis,” one rheumatologist testified.The dangerous treatments Zamora-Quezada prescribed caused patients to develop debilitating side effects, including strokes, necrosis of the jawbone, hair loss and liver damage.Other victims developed pain so severe that they were left unable to perform simple, everyday tasks.“Constantly being in bed and being unable to get up from bed alone, and being pumped with medication, I didn’t feel like my life had any meaning,” one patient told the court.A mother compared her child to a lab rat with the amount of me...