Dr. Rodney Sosa was convicted this spring of conspiracy to defraud the United States and make materially false statements this spring and sentenced to 46 months in federal custody for his role in a telemedicine scheme that involved medically unnecessary equipment and testing.
The U.S. Attorney in the Northern District charged Sosa with the scheme in June 2023, but his medical license was suspended in September of that year, nearly three months after he pleaded guilty. Additionally, Sosa practiced in the clinic of another suspended physician, Dr. Jon Ver Halen.
According to court documents, Sosa signed prescriptions and other Medicare documents for unneeded prescriptions and medical equipment in exchange for kickbacks and bribes. Sosa was a contractor for an alleged telemedicine company and submitted $1.4 million worth of claims to federal payers in 2019. He received $574,000 worth of genetic testing and equipment.
Sosa allegedly signed fraudulent prescriptions for testing and equipment in exchange for $50 consults for the telemedicine company while providing few services other than genetic testing and medical equipment like orthotic braces. Meanwhile, Sosa and his co-conspirators submitted false and fraudulent documentation to support the unnecessary equipment and testing.
Sosa’s prosecution was part of a strategically coordinated two-week nationwide effort by the Department of Justice that charged 78 people with $2.5 billion worth of healthcare fraud in 2023. He was sentenced in March of this year, and his medical license was revoked in April.
But Sosa’s connection with another suspended physician begs even more questions. Before he was charged, Sosa worked at Ver Halen Aesthetics with Southlake plastic surgeon Jon ver Halen, who was suspended last year for performing surgeries while he was under discipline not to do so by the Texas Medical Board, among other things. A patient of Ver Halen’s told D CEO Healthcare that Sosa, who at one point was listed as a medical director at Ver Halen’s clinic, was part of their surgery team, even though he is not a certified plastic surgeon. In Texas, any physician with a medical degree can perform any surgery a patient desires, but the patient said she was misled about his credentials. It is best practice to leave the surgeries to board certified surgeons.
A 2022 video posted to Facebook from Ver Halen Aesthetics is still online and has a caption describing a full tummy tuck that says, “Dr. Sosa working his magic.” It is unclear if Rodney Sosa is the one being referred to in the video. According to the TMB, Sosa has an internal medicine certification and is not a board certified plastic surgeon. In addition to the patient who spoke with D CEO Healthcare, at least one online patient review says that Sosa was practicing as a plastic surgeon. The comment is from just weeks before Sosa’s indictment in 2023.
This LinkedIn profile for “Rod Sosa MD,” which matches the education information on Sosa’s TMB file, says he worked as a cosmetic surgeon at Ver Halen Aesthetics and Plastic Surgery for two years beginning in 2021. In a one-star review on the DFW Center for Aesthetics and Cosmetic Surgery’s website, a reviewer describes how they had a “Mommy Makeover” with Dr. Rodney Sosa in February 2023. The American Society of Plastic Surgeons describes a Mommy Maker as a single-stage surgical procedure that may include breast augmentation, breast lift, buttock augmentation, labiaplasty, liposuction, and a tummy tuck. These procedures are usually performed by plastic surgeons, not internists. The commenter says Sosa approved her for a revision procedure but then got in legal trouble and left the practice.
Ver Halen Aesthetics no longer has an online presence, but DFW Center for Aesthetics and Cosmetic Surgery lists Elaine ver Halen as one of the staff (her bio does not mention Jon) and has a page about an award Dr. Ver Halen won in 2018. A review on the DFW Center for Aesthetics and Cosmetic Surgery recommends the center and says it was former Ver Halen Aesthetics.
D CEO Healthcare will continue to investigate whether or not Sosa, who federal records say is a prisoner at a low-security federal correction institution in Beaumont, performed plastic surgeries at ver Halen Aesthetics.
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