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Doctor accused of sexual assault in Des Plaines gets 9 years

A federal judge has sentenced Charles Dehaan to nine years in prison for fraudulently billing Medicare for house calls in which prosecutors allege the Rockford-area doctor molested his homebound patients, including one from Des Plaines.

The sentence was two years shy of the maximum term sought by prosecutors, who maintained that 64-year-old doctor had for years sexually assaulted elderly, seriously ill women during visits to their homes. Dehaan also was ordered to repay $2.7 million prosecutors estimated he overbilled to Medicare.

<URL destination="http://chicago.suntimes.com/news/watchdogs-doctor-accused-in-sex-cases-faces-fraud-sentencing/">Addressing the judge, Dehaan maintained that the accusations from other patients were false. He said he had been unable to fully address the accusations because of pending criminal charges involving four former patients and more than a dozen lawsuits.

</URL>In Cook County, prosecutors allege the doctor assaulted a bedridden, 60-year-old woman who suffered from social anxiety so severe that she could not leave her house. The woman, who provided a videotaped statement to prosecutors, wept as she described what Dehaan did and assured her no on would believe her if she told them.

On Thursday, the woman's boyfriend testified that Dehaan been a model physician for years, until the woman injured her hip and was forced to stay in bed.

"Once (she) got bedridden, he changed. He'd come in and he'd want the door (to her room) shut," the man said.

In court filings, Dehaan's lawyers have pointed out inconsistencies in the women's stories, and noted that many of his alleged victims - including the Des Plaines woman - only made allegations after seeing news reports about Dehaan after his license to practice medicine was suspended in 2014.

The judge declined to fine Dehaan in addition to the $2.7 million he was to pay back to the government, noting that a pre-sentence investigation showed Dehaan was $2.6 million in debt.

For the complete story, visit chicago.suntimes.com.

Des Plaines doctor accused of sexually abusing patient

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