Schaumburg physician convicted of health care fraud

A federal jury has convicted a 43-year-old Schaumburg physician of five counts of health care fraud and four counts of making false statements involving a health care benefits program following a weeklong trial in U.S. District Court.

Dr. Jaswinder Rai Chhibber, who owned and operated the Cottage Grove Community Medical Clinic on Chicago's South Side, remains free on bond pending his sentencing, which will take place before U.S. District Judge Suzanne Conlon on May 10.

Prosecutors said that between 2007 and 2010, Chhibber ordered unnecessary tests, falsified patients' records and used false diagnosis codes on the insurance forms of at least five patients, two of them undercover agents.

Additionally, Chhibber administered an unusually high number of echocardiograms, electrocardiograms, abdominal ultrasounds and other tests on his Medicare and Blue Cross patients, prosecutors said.

Chhibber faces up to 10 years in federal prison on each of the five health care fraud counts and a maximum of five years in prison on the false statements counts. He could also be ordered to pay a $250,000 fine on each count.