Feds join civil suit against Lafayette doctor

Associated Press - November 24, 2009 12:44 PM ET

LAFAYETTE, La. (AP) - The federal government has intervened in a civil lawsuit against a Lafayette cardiologist convicted of charges he performed medically unnecessary heart procedures.

Dr. Mehmood Patel was sentenced in June to 10 years in prison for his conviction on 51 counts of health care fraud. He is appealing his conviction.

Patel also is a defendant in a so-called "whistleblower" lawsuit that 1 of his colleagues, Dr. Christopher Mallavarapu, filed under provisions of the False Claims Act. The act allows the government to recover three times the amount of its losses plus civil penalties.

The suit accuses Patel of billing Medicare for catheterizations and other procedures that weren't necessary.