Patient Safety | 02.03.23
Raleigh Doctor Guilty of Using 'Unsanitary' Surgical Devices, Other Charges in Medicare Fraud Case
by ABC-TV 11 in Raleigh
Dr. Anita Louise Jackson was recently found guilty of re-using "unsanitary" equipment meant for one-time use on unsuspecting patients during surgeries. Additionally, the U.S. Attorney's Office confirmed Jackson was convicted on charges of paying illegal remunerations, fabricating medical and healthcare records, conspiracy, and mail fraud. Jackson operated at Greater Carolina Ear, Nose, and Throat, with offices in Raleigh and suburban Lumberton and Rockingham, N.C. In all, she was convicted on 20 counts after a three-week federal jury trial. Authorities said she used equipment to perform balloon sinuplasty during more than 1,400 surgeries for Medicare patients between 2011 and 2017. Jackson utilized an FDA-approved device called the Entellus XprESS meant for use on one patient, during one surgery, and then was to be discarded. Investigators charged the numbers did not add up in this case, as Jackson received at most only three dozen new Entellus devices between 2012 and 2017.
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