Kentucky doctor acquitted on federal health fraud, improper prescribing charges
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An Eastern Kentucky doctor accused of health fraud and writing illegal prescriptions has been acquitted.
A jury in federal court in London returned a not guilty verdict Wednesday in favor of Dr. Loey Kousa on all nine charges he faced.
“Our victory was decisive,” Kousa said in an interview. “I did not do anything wrong.”
Kousa operates East KY Clinic PLLC in Paintsville.
He was indicted last year on five charges of writing prescriptions for opioid pain drugs without a legitimate medical purpose; two charges of health fraud for allegedly billing health programs such as Medicaid and Medicare for services that were not needed, not performed or less expensive than he said; and two charges of making false statements in medical records.
The most serious charges carried a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
The jury acquitted him after deliberating a total of about six hours over two days.
Kousa had been barred from writing prescriptions for controlled substances as part his pretrial release conditions. U.S. District Judge Robert E. Wier lifted that restriction after the verdict.
The Kentucky Board of Medical Licensure also restricted Kousa from writing prescriptions for controlled substances after he was indicted in April 2022.
Kouse said that restriction will be lifted as well.
Kousa cut back hours at his office while the case was pending but said he plans to resume a full schedule in two weeks.
This story was originally published July 20, 2023 at 12:38 PM.
