Pharmacists hit with $31K fine for almost $176,000 in illegal benefits and billing violations

Another pharmacist and former associate of Quebec’s deposed “king of pharmacy” Jonathan-Yan Perrault has been slammed with stiff sanctions, with orders to pay $31,000 in fines plus thousands more in hearing costs. André Gosselin, proprietor of three pharmacies in the communities of Vaudreuil-Dorion and Châteauguay and La Prairie—with the latter co-owned previously with Perreault and another pharmacist—was found guilty of illegally accepting benefits totalling close to $152,000. More than $118,000 of these illegal benefits were in the form of rebates from the purchase of medication from the wholesaler McKesson Canada. The rest were paid to Gosselin through discounts or rebates from the generic drug manufacturers Apotex Inc., Actavis and Sandoz Canada Inc. Read: $21,500 fine for $242K in kickbacks: Another ex-partner of Quebec's deposed 'king of pharmacy' sees sanctions Gosselin had admitted to four of the seven charges against him but the Ordre des pharmaciens du Québec found him guilty on six counts. According to the decision document, Gosselin had also violated billing rules when he filed claims to the provincial health plan for medications he provided to patients living in a seniors’ residence. This violation allowed him to submit $25,000 in claims, compared to the $1,500 allowable had he followed the rules. He has paid back the province $24,674 for the incorrect billing, but did so only after he was found guilty by the discipline council, according to the decision document. Gosselin also broke the profession’s rules by having a pharmacy technical assistant prepare and bill for medications without a pharmacist present in the store. A total of 14,293 services were rendered at Gosselin’s pharmacy under these conditions between 2018 and 2019, representing close to 70% of all services provided during this period. Gosselin blamed Perreault for negotiating the agreements that generated illegal benefits. Since breaking ties with Perreault, he said, he has taken the precaution of consulting with his lawyer before signing any agreements or contracts related to his pharmacies. He also noted that he was on the verge of bankruptcy and had considered quitting the profession. Gosselin is one of more than 20 pharmacy owners sanctioned over the last two years who were business associates of Perrault. In 2017, as he sat atop his empire of about 40 pharmacies, Perrault was found guilty of 60 charges that included kickbacks and fraudulent billing, and suspended from pharmacy practice for almost 32 years. Read: Owner of Quebec town's one and only pharmacy pleads guilty to falsifying prescriptions and cocaine use

Pharmacists hit with $31K fine for almost $176,000 in illegal benefits and billing violations

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