Policy & oversight
Glendale Doctor Gets 15 Years for Billing Medicare 45 Million Dollars for Botox Shots She Never Gave
A California physician who submitted claims for Botox injections that were never provided, including on days her clinic was closed and while she was on vacation, was sentenced October 30 to 15 years in federal prison.
By the Goodsurance editorial teamNovember 1, 2026
A Glendale, California physician was sentenced on October 30 to 15 years in federal prison after billing Medicare for more than 45 million dollars in Botox injection services that were either never provided, medically unnecessary, or given only for cosmetic purposes.
Violetta Mailyan, 45, owned and operated Healthy Way Medical Center in Glendale. Although Medicare covers Botox injections to treat documented cases of chronic migraines, federal prosecutors showed Mailyan submitted thousands of claims for injections that were not given, were provided only for cosmetic reasons, or were given to patients whose primary care physicians had not referred them for migraine treatment.
A Glendale doctor billed Medicare over 45 million dollars for Botox shots she never gave, including while vacationing. She gets 15 years in prison.
The fraud included billing for services on days the clinic was closed and on days when Mailyan was traveling in Mexico, Hawaii, Las Vegas, Pennsylvania, and New York. When investigators began closing in, Mailyan falsified medical records and forged Medicare beneficiary signatures, including for a man who was incarcerated in federal prison at the time the injections were supposedly administered.
A jury convicted Mailyan in May 2026 on nine counts of wire fraud and three counts of obstruction of a criminal investigation. At sentencing, the court ordered her to forfeit more than 16 million dollars in property, including two Tesla vehicles, and to pay about 32.9 million dollars in restitution to Medicare.
The case was prosecuted in the Central District of California.
In plain words
A doctor in Glendale, California will spend 15 years in prison for cheating Medicare. She billed Medicare for Botox shots that she never gave. Medicare only pays for Botox when it treats a medical condition called chronic migraine, not for cosmetic use. She billed for shots on days when her office was closed. She also billed while she was on vacation in other states. A jury found her guilty in May 2026. A judge sentenced her on October 30. She must pay back about 32.9 million dollars to Medicare.
Understand the basics first
Source: DOJ
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