NRI PULSE STAFF REPORT
Memphis, TN, July 9, 2026 — An East Memphis gynecologist convicted of repeatedly using improperly reprocessed medical devices on thousands of women and defrauding Medicare and Medicaid was sentenced Tuesday to 20 years in federal prison.
Dr. Sanjeev Kumar, 45, received a sentence of 240 months in prison followed by two years of supervised release after a federal jury in January found him guilty on 40 of 46 counts, including 18 counts of adulterating medical devices, 16 counts of misbranding reprocessed medical devices, and six counts of health care fraud.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Kumar performed more than 15,000 hysteroscopy biopsy procedures on Medicare and Medicaid patients between September 2019 and April 2024 using devices that were either intended for single use or had been improperly reprocessed. Prosecutors said he billed more than $41 million for the procedures and received more than $4.8 million from Medicare and Medicaid.
“This defendant used his medical license to target a vulnerable population of women seeking treatment in extremely personal and intimate procedures,” U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant said in a statement. “Motivated by greed, he caused significant physical and psychological harm to patients by violating their trust and putting their health at risk.”
Federal prosecutors argued that Kumar knowingly reused single-use or improperly reprocessed devices in violation of FDA regulations and then billed Medicare and Medicaid for procedures performed with those devices, exposing patients to unnecessary health risks while fraudulently billing government health care programs.
The investigation was conducted by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, the FBI, and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.
A restitution hearing has been scheduled for Oct. 2, when the court will determine how much Kumar must pay to victims and to Medicare and Medicaid.
The case took several turns before reaching trial. Kumar was originally indicted on additional charges alleging he enticed women to travel across state lines for illegal sexual activity. Those counts were dismissed after Chief U.S. District Judge Sheryl H. Lipman ruled that the alleged conduct, while the subject of other criminal charges, did not meet the legal definition of “sexual activity” under the federal statute cited by prosecutors. The government subsequently filed a superseding indictment focused on medical device adulteration, misbranding, and health care fraud, leading to Kumar’s conviction.
Before sentencing, Kumar’s attorneys signaled they intend to appeal. They filed a motion asking the court to overturn the jury’s verdict, arguing that the prosecution’s theory conflicted with U.S. Food and Drug Administration guidance governing the reprocessing of certain medical devices used in outpatient physician offices.
The defense also submitted declarations from a former FDA chief enforcement attorney and a physician with FDA regulatory expertise, both of whom argued that prosecutors had misinterpreted FDA regulations in bringing the case. Kumar’s attorneys have maintained that these issues will form the basis of an appeal, although no notice of appeal had been filed immediately following sentencing.
The prosecution attracted national attention because of the large number of patients involved and the allegations that Kumar continued the practices over several years while billing federal health care programs. Federal officials said the 20-year sentence reflects the seriousness of violating patient trust and compromising patient safety for financial gain.
