A former Oakland County cancer doctor convicted of hurting hundreds of patients by prescribing needless treatments is again trying to get out of prison early — claiming he otherwise can’t get the medical care he needs for a blood disorder.
Earlier this summer, Farid Fata renewed a request for compassionate release stating the drug needed to treat his neutropenia — a low number of white blood cells which fight infection — isn’t available in prison. Without the drug, Neupogen or filgrastim, he has ain increased risk of dying from infection, according to Charles Howard, MD, the medical expert Fata got to weigh-in on his early release request.
In 2020, Fata initially filed for compassionate release citing his age, health problems and risk of COVID-19. He reportedly contracted the virus in prison and developed long-term effects including skin and eye infections, recurrent urinary tract infections and other problems allegedly related to a compromised immune system.
Fata’s renewed release request also claims he has had “remarkable conduct” during the 11 years he has spent in prison so far; he reportedly has had no disciplinary action, is remorseful, has assisted other inmates in obtaining a GED and has helped develop business plans for inmates eyeing release.
Fata, 59, was sentenced to 45 years in prison after pleading guilty in 2014 to health care fraud, conspiracy and money laundering, and admitting he gave patients unnecessary chemotherapy and other treatments.
As stated in the compassionate release petition, Fata has served a sentence “that reflects the seriousness of his crimes, as serving more time would not add a deterrence value, but would become ‘greater than necessary’ in light of Fata’s deteriorating medical conditions.”
According to court records, the U.S. Attorney’s Office estimated that Fata fraudulently injured hundreds of patients and fraudulently billed nearly $35 million to Medicare — a scheme which Barbara McQuade, U.S. Attorney at the time, described as “the most egregious” health care fraud case her office had ever seen.
For the renewed compassionate release request, the U.S. Attorney’s Office has until Sept. 20 to file a response. The government set an Aug. 26 deadline to accept victim impact statements to consider before making a decision. Fata’s deadline to reply to the government’s response is Oct. 11.
In 2018, Fata filed to have his conviction overturned, claiming he only pleaded guilty because his attorney convinced him to do so.
Fata is at FCI Williamsburg, a medium security prison with an adjacent minimum security satellite camp.. His current release date is Dec. 11, 2050.