WASHINGTON: Dr. Ajay Aggarwal, a 63-year-old pain medicine specialist of Indian origin based in Houston, has agreed to pay more than $2 million to settle allegations of medical fraud, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced.
Between 2021 and 2023, Dr. Aggarwal allegedly billed federally funded healthcare programs — including Medicare and the Department of Labor’s Workers’ Compensation Programs — for complex surgical procedures that were never performed. Instead, patients received simple medical devices that did not require surgery, and all procedures were conducted at his clinic, not in a hospital or surgical setting.
“Billing Medicare for sophisticated spinal surgeries while using basic devices is billing the American taxpayer — plain and simple,” said U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei. “We are committed to recovering losses from fraudulent billing practices and holding wrongdoers accountable.”
The DOJ also cited a 2023 report alleging that Dr. Aggarwal previously prescribed unnecessary treatments to federal employees under workers’ compensation. His pharmacy, Medley, officially owned by his wife, was used to fill and submit these prescriptions — sometimes without the patients even seeing the doctor.
A former employee of Medley, who came forward as a whistleblower, claimed that staff were directed to auto-refill medications monthly and use pre-signed prescription pads, submitting prescriptions to the Department of Labor’s Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs without proper medical evaluation.
This recent case comes amid broader national discussions around the role of foreign-trained doctors in the U.S. healthcare system. While some Republican leaders have voiced concerns over oversight and accountability, others argue that the country needs more doctors — and that international medical graduates can help bridge that gap.
