Feds: New Jersey doctor accepted Justin Bieber, Katy Perry tickets as bribes
NEWARK, N.J. - A Long Island doctor accepted cash bribes and tickets to Justin Bieber and Katy Perry concerts to steer business to a New Jersey blood lab, federal prosecutors said.
Bret Ostrager, 55, of Woodbury, New York, accepted monthly bribes of $3,300 from employees and associates of Biodiagnostic Laboratory Services in Parsippany, prosecutors said. They allege he also received thousands of dollars' worth of meals and tickets to sporting events, concerts and the Broadway musical "Newsies."
In return, prosecutors claim Ostrager referred his patients' blood samples to BLS, generating just over $900,000 in business for the lab.
He was indicted in Newark, New Jersey, on Tuesday on charges of violating anti-kickback laws and other offenses. He practices in Nassau County.
Thirty-eight people, including 26 doctors, have pleaded guilty in connection with the bribery scheme, prosecutors said. Its organizers have admitted that millions of dollars of bribes resulted in more than $100 million in payments to BLS from Medicare and private insurers.
The investigation has recovered more than $11.5 million through forfeiture.
Ostrager faces up to five years in prison if convicted. His attorney could not be reached for comment.