Over 100 new charges filed against W.Pa. doctor accused of exchanging drugs for sex
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More charges have been filed against a former family physician with offices in Fayette and Westmoreland counties who was indicted last fall on charges of exchanging opioid medication for sexual favors from patients.
Federal prosecutors have filed more than 130 new charges against Emilio Ramon Navarro, 58, of Coal Center, Washington County, accusing him of unlawfully dispensing controlled substances and health care fraud.
A second patient came forward since the initial indictment in September that listed 29 counts and accused Navarro of dispensing drugs in exchange for sex, according to a 161-count grand jury indictment unsealed last week in U.S. District Court in Pittsburgh.
According to the state medical license board, Navarro, who had family practice locations in Perryopolis in Fayette and Mt. Pleasant in Westmoreland, voluntarily surrendered his license in October, according to state records.
The superseding indictment accuses Navarro of distributing oxymorphone and oxycodone, both pain medicines, to two patients between April 2015 and September 2019. During the same period, Navarro gave Alprazolam, also known as Xanax, to the second patient in return for sex, authorities said.
In all, Navarro is accused of 159 counts involving illegal dispensing of drugs. He also was indicted on two counts of health care fraud for allegedly submitting fraudulent claims to Medicaid for payments involving the illegal drug distribution.
Navarro could not be reached for comment.
U.S. Attorney Scott Brady said the law provides for a maximum per count sentence of 20 years in prison, a fine of $1 million or both, for the controlled substances offenses. Navarro faces an additional maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years and a fine of $250,000 for each of the health care fraud charges.
Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence could vary.
Brady said the investigation was conducted by the Western Pennsylvania Opioid Fraud and Abuse Detection Unit.