February 25 - March 24, 2022
Brentwood Compounding Pharmacy Owner Sentenced to Federal Prison for Running $14 Million Health Care Fraud Scheme Navid Vahedi faces over two years in federal prison B y S am C atanzaro A Brentwood pharmacist was sentenced recently to 30 months in federal prison for orchestrating a scheme that fraudulently obtained millions of dollars for compounded drugs in a scheme that paid illegal kickbacks for patient referrals and fraudulently paid patients’ copayments. Navid Vahedi, 42, of Brentwood, was sentenced by United States District Judge Christina A. Snyder. Vahedi and his West Los Angeles-based company, Fusion Rx Compounding Pharmacy, pleaded guilty in February 2021 to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and payment of illegal remunerations. On January 18, Judge Snyder sentenced Fusion Rx Compounding Pharmacy to five years of probation. She has ordered Vahedi and his company to jointly pay $4,400,525 in restitution. Fusion Rx was a provider of compounded drugs, which are tailor-made products
doctors may prescribe when FDA-approved alternatives do not meet the health needs of patients. Vahedi, a licensed pharmacist, and Fusion Rx routed millions of dollars in kickback payments through the businesses of two marketers to steer prescriptions for compounded drugs to Fusion Rx. As part of the scheme, Vahedi and the two marketers provided physicians with preprinted prescription script pads that offered “check-the-box” options on the form to maximize the amount of insurance reimbursement for the compounded drugs. From May 2014 to at least February 2016, Fusion Rx received approximately $14 million in reimbursements on its claims for compounded drug prescriptions. As part of its contracts with various insurance networks, Fusion Rx was obligated to collect copayments from patients. Because the copayments might discourage patients from requesting expensive and potentially unnecessary compounded drug prescriptions, Fusion Rx did not collect copayments with any regularity and, in other instances, it provided gift cards to patients to offset the amount of the copayments, according to court documents.
Fusion Rx, see page 4
Fusion Rx Compounding Pharmacy at 2001 Westwood Blvd.
Photo: Google
Rick Caruso Has Officially Filed Paperwork to Run for Mayor of Los Angeles Billionaire has changed his party registration from no preference to Democrat B y D olores Q uintana
Billionaire developer Rick Caruso has filed paperwork to become a candidate for the office of the Mayor of Los Angeles this afternoon as reported by The Los Angeles Times. The 63 year old developer of The Grove announced his intention to run one day before the deadline to file in the primary on June 7. He recently changed his party registration from No Preference
to Democrat, but had been a registered Republican for many years. Caruso has never been elected to office before but was appointed to the Board of the Department of Water And Power in the 1980s. He is the chair of The USC Board of Trustees, his alma mater, and was appointed president of the Los Angeles Police Commission. After signing the paperwork, Rick Caruso said, as quoted by The LA Times, “I’m excited to be here. It’s a very meaningful day for me and my family.“I love Los Angeles.” but was interrupted by a protester who screamed, “L.A. doesn’t want a billionaire as mayor.” as reported by the LA Times. Caruso’s late entry into the fray could be a spoiler in a race that was thought to have been mostly settled. Caruso is the developer behind The Americana at The Brand, Palisades Village and a number of other properties including The Grove. Caruso is a resident of Brentwood.