Dr. Moses DeGraft Johnson, 46, a dual citizen of the United States and Ghana, pled guilty to committing healthcare fraud, conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud, and aggravated identity theft. Over the course of almost four years, beginning in late 2015 or early 2016 until his arrest in February 2020, DeGraft-Johnson did significant harm to hundreds of patients living in the Tallahassee area. Many of these innocent victims underwent unnecessary and invasive surgical procedures, while others were victimized through medical records reflecting procedures he did not perform — erroneous and misleading records that could cause doctors in the future to determine a mistaken course of medical treatment for many patients. DeGraft-Johnson inappropriately gained access to his vulnerable victims by establishing relationships with churches, nursing homes, a hospital, and an outreach organization.
DeGraft-Johnson owned and operated Thorvasc PA, a Florida corporation doing business as the Heart and Vascular Institute of North Florida (HVINF). HVINF was a physician’s office and outpatient catheterization laboratory located in Tallahassee. As part of his plea, DeGraft-Johnson acknowledged engaging in a wide-ranging and consistent pattern of performing two invasive diagnostic angiography procedures — one on each leg — on hundreds of his patients, whether medically indicated or not. When his patients returned for follow-up office visits, DeGraft-Johnson submitted fraudulent claims to their insurance companies stating he performed atherectomies during the appointments. Using this scheme, DeGraft-Johnson admits he falsely claimed to have performed over 3,000 of these surgical procedures to clear blockages in arteries in as many as 845 of his patients’ legs.
