CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (WZTV) — A Clarksville former doctor is part of a nationwide healthcare fraud crackdown by the federal government.
Tuesday, under President Trump’s direction, the Department of Justice announced 455 defendants, including 90 doctors and other medical professional, have been accused of health care fraud totaling $6.5 billion.
The Department of Justice says the allegations include opioid abuse schemes which they say caused significant patient harm, including death.
“Fraudsters can no longer rip off American taxpayers. If you seek to harm or cheat Americans, we will find you,” said US Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche.
Federal prosecutors say cases like this are about more than money. They say overprescribing can harm patients and communities, while taxpayer-funded programs can be billed for prescriptions prosecutors say should not have been written.
Federal court documents accuse Ramon Aquino, 77, of Clarksville, of prescribing controlled substances, including opioids and benzodiazepines, in “excessive and inappropriate quantities.”
The filing also claims some prescriptions were without “medical necessity” and could cause patients “to abuse, misuse and become addicted” to the drugs.
Over a seven-year period from July 2017 to July 2024, court documents say Aquino prescribed 43,103 controlled-substance prescriptions.
The filing says that included approximately 525,519 pills or doses of narcotics and 569,455 pills or doses of benzodiazepines, a class of anti-anxiety drugs.
Aquino was a doctor at North Clarksville Medical Center on Dover Road.
The clinic is now NorthStar Medical Group and is under new ownership.
Braden Boucek, U.S. attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee, said Aquino’s case is part of the larger crackdown, but the impact of alleged overprescribing is felt in local communities.
“It destroys homes, it destroys lives, it destroys families, and it leaves entire communities hollowed out,” Boucek said.
Aquino is accused of prescribing drugs to patients on Medicare, a federally funded program, and TennCare, Tennessee’s Medicaid program, which is funded by the state and federal government.
Prosecutors say pharmacies submitted claims to Medicare and TennCare for those prescriptions, meaning taxpayer-funded programs were billed for drugs prosecutors say should not have been prescribed.
In Aquino’s case, court documents alleged nearly $890,000 in false claims were submitted to Medicare and TennCare and more than $335,000 was paid out.
Aquino is charged with one count of health care fraud.
Federal prosecutors allege the scheme ran from January 2018 through October 2023.
When asked why a federal charge was filed now, Boucek said, “The stakes are so high here.”
“These cases take time,” Boucek said.
Aquino declined to comment when WZTV called him. His attorney did not respond to a request for comment.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Tennessee, Aquino still has to make his first appearance in court on or before July 6.
