Doctor Uses Unapproved Drugs, Bilks Medicare
Isabella Martire, MD, of Laurel, MD, an oncologist, pleaded guilty to introducing an unapproved drug to interstate commerce on August 8th, 2011, after purchasing nearly 200,000 doses of medication meant for distribution in Turkey, and not approved for use in the United States.
In 2010, federal agents began investigating an English pharmaceutical wholesaler that was importing prescription drugs approved and labeled for use only outside the United States. Agents also found that Dr. Martire purchased nearly 200,000 of these drugs (not approved by the FDA for use in the US) in 2010. During a May 26, 2011 raid, agents found boxes with labels and packaging in Turkish, announced the DOJ.
Dr. Martire threatened the health of her patients by exposing them to medications that had not been regulated by American distribution channels, thereby exposing them to possibly ineffective or toxic substances not meant to be in the medication. Exposing a loophole in European Union parallel importation law, she purchased medications meant for export to Turkey from the UK, and which were therefore not appropriately regulated for US patients. The medications, to be regulated in Turkey, never received the final lookover from the appropriate authorities, nor did they reach the intended recipients. Instead, via the gray market, Dr. Martire made some extra money by reimbursing herself at the going rate for medicines discounted in quality as well as price.
Dr. Martire admitted using the unapproved drugs to treat cancer patients and sought reimbursement from Medicare, Medicaid, other government agencies and private health insurers for the cost of those drugs. In total she realized a gain of $790,600 from her deception.