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Hartford County resident Donald Salzberg, age 67, of Avon, pleaded guilty Thursday, July 14, to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and one count of conspiracy to receive kickbacks in federal court in Boston.
Prosecutors said that between 2014 and 2019 Salzberg, who owned and operated an ophthalmology practice in West Hartford, conspired with a principal for a medical diagnostics company to order hundreds of unnecessary brain scans.
Salzburg and his co-conspirator relied on falsified patient diagnoses to order the scans, which were then billed to Medicare and other insurance companies, prosecutors said.
In exchange, Salzberg received cash kickbacks of between $100 and $125 per test, along with bogus administrative fees.
The five-year scheme resulted in fraudulent bills totaling over $3 million to Medicare and private insurance companies.
Salzburg now faces up to 15 years in prison and a fine of up to $500,000.
A sentencing hearing has not yet been scheduled.
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