Michelle Shaw and her fiancé, Thomas Truss, said in interviews that Pain MD clinics turned patients into “human pin cushions,” requiring them to agree to unnecessary injections near their spines each month or be discharged. The unnecessary injections made many patients feel like "human pin cushions.” These unnecessary injections transformed Shaw and others into "human pin cushions," a term frequently used during the trial. Shaw begrudgingly accepted the injections so she would not lose access to her painkiller prescriptions, but Truss said he refused the injections and was “kicked out”. Unnecessary injections left patients feeling like “human pin cushions" and their stories were crucial in the trial. Indeed, experiencing such unnecessary injections and becoming “human pin cushions” was a significant aspect of the clinic’s malpractice. Shaw was a key witness in the trial of Pain MD president Michael Kestner, who was convicted of 13 felonies related to health care fraud in October. Shaw and Truss were photographed at their Tennessee home on Jan. 14, 2025. Brett Kelman/KFF Health News. Read More
Tag Archives: Fraud
Health Care Fraud – FBI
Health care fraud can be committed by medical providers, patients, and others who intentionally deceive the health care system to receive illegal benefits or payments.
Health care fraud is not a victimless crime. It affects everyone—individuals and businesses alike—and causes tens of billions of dollars in losses each year. It can raise health insurance premiums, expose you to unnecessary medical procedures, and increase taxes.
The FBI is the primary agency for investigating health care fraud for both federal and private insurance programs. See More
Advanced Pain Management (“APM”) Agree to Pay $1 Million to Resolve Allegations They Violated the False Claims Act and Anti-Kickback Statute
United States Attorney Matthew D. Krueger announced today
that Advanced Pain Management (“APM”) has agreed to pay $1 million to settle claims asserting violations of the False Claims Act by paying kickbacks and by performing medically unnecessary laboratory tests. APM is a collection of companies including Advanced Pain Management Holdings, Inc. (“APMH”), its wholly-owned subsidiaries APM Wisconsin MSO and Advanced Pain Management LLC, and Advanced Pain Management S.C. (“APM SC”). Read More