HUNTINGDON VALLEY, PA — A local man who ran a prescription 'pill mill' out of his medical practice in the City of Philadelphia, sending patients home with a "goodie bag" full of controlled substances after office visits, has received a 20-year federal prison term, the United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania announced this week.
Andrew Berkowitz, 62, of Huntingdon Valley, was also ordered to pay nearly $4 million in restitution and a $40,000 fine after he received his sentence Tuesday by U.S. District Judge Paul Diamond at the federal courthouse in Philadelphia.
Berkowitz, who ran A+ Pain Management in the city, was indicted back in June 2019.
He pleaded guilty in January 2020 to 19 counts of health care fraud and 23 counts of distributing oxycodone outside the course of professional practice and without a legitimate medical purpose, according to federal prosecutors.
The U.S. Attorney's Office stated that Berkowitz's scheme involved fraudulently billing insurers for medically unnecessary physical therapy, acupuncture, chiropractic adjustments and prescription drugs, as well as for treatments that were never provided at all.
Prosecutors said that Berkowitz would also send every patient home with a "goodie bag" containing a variety of drugs including muscle relaxers, topical pain analgesics, and even...
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