Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, July 31, 1990 TAG: 9007310225
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: MONICA DAVEY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: BEDFORD LENGTH: Medium
Paul R. Heaton pleaded guilty Monday to two felony charges in connection with the case, in which authorities say Heaton's chiropractic clinic improperly billed the state and federal insurance programs for the elderly and poor for an estimated $200,000 over the past decade.
As part of an agreement with Bedford prosecutors, four other felony counts were dropped in exchange for Heaton's reluctant plea.
Asked for his plea, Heaton answered: "Not guilty, but due to the circumstances I will enter a guilty plea."
"Well, I can't accept that," said Circuit Judge William Sweeney, who went on to explain to Heaton that he had to pick just one plea. Though he intended to make a so-called "Alford" plea, Heaton still had to plead guilty, the judge said.
Well-tanned and dressed in a charcoal gray suit and red tie, Heaton said he was guilty.
Heaton's wife, Deborah, pleaded guilty last week to a conspiracy charge as part of a separate agreement. A medical doctor who worked at the Heatons' clinic, William Harris, also has been charged.
Outlining a five-year investigation into the Chiropractic Center of Virginia, Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Philip Baker said the Heatons had hired medical doctors to work in their chiropractic clinic in order to cheat Medicaid and Medicare.
Medicare pays for only a few chiropractic services and Medicaid pays for none.
But, Baker said, the Heatons billed those insurance programs using the identification number of the medical doctor on staff.
Sometimes Medicaid or Medicare was billed for services never performed, Baker said. Other times, the medical doctor wasn't even in the building at the time the service was given.
In other cases, the insurance companies would be billed for the medical doctor's work when the chiropractor did the treatment.
"The whole purpose of bringing a doctor into one of those practices is to use him for insurance purposes," Baker said. He said most of the medical doctors stayed out of the billing questions and left that to the Heatons.
Defense attorney G. Edgar Dawson took issue with Baker's claim that Heaton had billed for services never rendered. Calling the plea agreement the best way to resolve the problem, Dawson said it was a "compromise of a doubtful and disputed claim."
The attorney also stressed that the case against Heaton didn't question his competence as a chiropractor, but his billing practices.
Baker, however, said the two issues might be intertwined. With such an eye toward money, Heaton may not have given his patients the best care, Baker said.
Aside from the jail sentence, Heaton was given a 10-year suspended sentence for each count and a five-year supervised probation period and was ordered to serve 600 hours of community service.
As restitution, the state will receive proceeds from the sale of Heaton's business and house.
The felony convictions mean Heaton will lose his license to practice chiropractic. After a year, he may apply to the state Department of Health Professionals to get the license back.
by CNB