This is another case which leaves you wondering whether the defendant is an immigrant trained to a different standard. Maybe an illegal immigrant? Chould this have been a case for the P.A. 166 of 2022 LARA Task Force on Foreign Trained Medical Professional Licensing instead? The defendant apparently had a Michigan license to practice medicine at one time:
Sterling Heights Physician Sentenced for Practicing Without a License
By Danny Wimmer - May 29, 2024LANSING – Today, Husam Thamin Abed, 54, of Sterling Heights, was sentenced to 30 days in the Kent County Jail for practicing medicine without a license, announced Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel. He also received a $2,000 fine and was ordered to pay another $1,000 in court costs, $60 in DNA costs, $130 Crime Victim Rights assessment, and $340 in state costs. Abed was convicted by a Kent County jury of six counts of the Unauthorized Practice of a Health Profession this past March.
Abed had practiced at his Grand Rapids clinic as a licensed physician within the specialty of urogynecology. With authorization from the Board of Medicine, the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) began investigating the practices of Abed and filed an administrative complaint against him on May 17th, 2022. The administrative complaint generally alleged a departure from acceptable medical standards. Based upon the allegations in the administrative complaint, and in consultation with the Board of Medicine, LARA issued a Summary Suspension of Dr. Abed’s license to practice medicine on May 23rd of that same year.
Additional investigation conducted by both LARA and the Department of Attorney General confirmed that Abed continued treating patients at his clinic after the suspension of his license to practice.
“The health and safety of our community depend on qualified and licensed medical professionals,” Nessel said. “Practicing medicine without a license or while that license is suspended is a serious health risk and can expose patients to unsafe or ineffective care. My office takes these violations seriously and will continue to investigate and prosecute those who endanger public health.”
The Attorney General’s Health Care Fraud Division (HCFD) handled this case for the Department. The HCFD is the federally certified Medicaid Fraud Control Unit for Michigan, and it receives 75% of its funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under a grant award totaling $5,541,992 for the fiscal year 2024. The remaining 25% percent, totaling $1,847,326 is funded by the State of Michigan.
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