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Ex-Physician Indicted For Illegally Prescribing Opioid Pills In South Jersey: Prosecutor

A former physician from South Jersey has been indicted for illegally prescribing highly-addictive opioid pills, authorities said.

Morris Starkman

Morris Starkman

Photo Credit: BCPO

Morris “Moishe” Starkman, 62, of Yellowstone Road in Cinnaminson, has been indicted on 21 counts of narcotics distribution and fraud charges for the alleged activity out of his Bordentown Township practice, according to Burlington County Prosecutor Scott Coffina.

Starkman simultaneously engaged in an unlawful medical billing scheme over a three-year period, Coffina alleged.

Starkman was indicted by a grand jury on 15 counts of distribution of a controlled dangerous substance, five counts of health care claims fraud and one count of insurance fraud, the prosecutor said.

Starkman was charged in November 2019 after multiple electronic devices were seized, along with business, financial and medical records during a warranted search of his home, Coffina said.

The investigation found that between Jan. 1, 2015 and Jan. 1, 2018, Starkman issued prescriptions for nearly 1.4 million  total doses of opioids, Coffina said.

Eight patients outlined in the criminal charges filed against Starkman received 11 doses of opioids per day on average during that period, he said. 

One patient alone was prescribed 17,460 doses, which equates to more than 15 daily, the prosecutor said.

Each patient received anywhere from four to 10 times the maximum dose recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, he said.

The investigation also revealed that Starkman submitted fraudulent health care claims to insurance companies for over $50,000 for services that were unauthorized or not provided, Coffina said.

Starkman is being prosecuted by Assistant Prosecutor Michael Angermeier, Assistant Prosecutor Josh Dennis, and First Assistant Prosecutor Philip S. Aronow.

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