Trending Topics

La. paramedic pleads guilty to pretending to be a doctor

A Baton Rouge paramedic pleaded guilty to falsely posing as a doctor to call in prescriptions, facing up to five years in prison and hefty fines

BATON ROUGE, La. — Baton Rouge Paramedic Samrat Mukherjee pleaded guilty to falsely posing as a doctor to call in prescriptions. He faces up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release and fines of up to $250,000.

The Department of Justice said Mukherjee admitted to posing as a licensed doctor, forging a medical degree and residency letter, and even celebrating a fake medical school graduation while employed as a licensed paramedic by Acadian Ambulance.

The DOJ said Mukherjee gained physician access at multiple hospitals, saw ICU patients, and wore “M.D.” and “Flight Surgeon” insignia while using badges identifying him as a doctor.

From May 2019 to November 2022, Mukherjee posed as two doctors, calling in prescriptions that led pharmacies to bill insurers, including Medicaid. In one case, he forged a doctor’s signature to prescribe medication for a cancer patient.

Trending
Funded by opioid settlement dollars, the new stations offer free naloxone, fentanyl test strips and other health supplies across Detroit
After being fined for slow responses in mid-2024, Decatur-Morgan Hofor two consecutive quarters with over 90% of calls answered within nine minutes
In response to growing ambulance service failures, Senate Bill 2033 aims to support struggling EMS providers through a ‘distressed ambulance workgroup’
An Austin-Travis County EMS spokesperson said two were rescued from under the debris of the house that exploded and a third from a partially collapsed house next door

Bill Carey is the associate editor for FireRescue1.com and EMS1.com. A former Maryland volunteer firefighter, sergeant, and lieutenant, Bill has written for several fire service publications and platforms. His work on firefighter behavioral health garnered a 2014 Neal Award nomination. His ongoing research and writings about line-of-duty death data is frequently cited in articles, presentations, and trainings. Have a news tip? He can be reached at news@lexipol.com.