Department of Insurance confirms fraud probe into Lap-Band | 89.3 ...

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A Google Maps screenshot of a Lap-Band billboard on W 11th Street, Los Angeles, Calif. The billboards are under fire after the FDA criticized their misleading displays.

The Department of Insurance in California has launched a fraud probe into Lap-Band affiliated surgery centers connected with the 1-800-GET-THIN advertising campaign, according to Aetna Insurance and the Department of Insurance.

"I can now confirm that the DOI has initiated an investigation into the surgery centers of 1-800-GET-THIN," said Dave Althausen, deputy press secretary with the California Department of Insurance.

Aetna, a major insurance company, is also working with the Southern California Fraud Division of the Department of Insurance to investigate "alleged fraud against our members by the surgery centers affiliated with 1-800-GET-THIN," according to spokesperson Anjie Coplin.

The probe comes a month after inquiries by the Food and Drug Administration into Lap-Band weight-loss surgery ads, and less than a week after calls from Congress to investigate the safety of 1-800-GET-THIN's marketing campaign.

"We believe the Committee should hold hearings to examine whether FDA device regulation has been ineffective in protecting the public from dangerous medical devices like the Lap-Band," said Rep. Henry Waxman in a letter to the chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, the L.A. Times reported. Rep. Diana DeGette and Rep. John D. Dingell also signed the letter.

Robert Silverman, president of 1-800-GET-THIN, has promised to send a statement regarding the probe. No statement has, as yet, been received.

At least five Southern California patients have died after Lap-Band procedures at clinics in Beverly Hills and West Hills that are affiliated with the 1-800-GET-THIN campaign, reports the Los Angeles Times after investigating various lawsuits, autopsy reports and other public records.

The Lap-Band surgery involves attaching an inflatable silicone device placed around the top portion of the stomach to treat obesity by reducing excess body fat.

Source: http://www.scpr.org/news/2012/01/27/30988/department-insurance-confirms-fraud-probe-lap-band/

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