Judge rules LI surgeon won't regain ability to file workers' comp claims

An orthopedic spinal surgeon from Valley Stream, accused of performing invasive and unnecessary medical procedures on patients without justification, will not regain his ability to file claims with the state Workers' Compensation Board, an upstate judge ruled Friday.

Dr. Joseph Weinstein had appealed the board’s 2025 ruling, barring him from treating injured workers with workers' compensation claims, arguing the decision was "riddled with inaccuracies and false conclusions."

State officials, the doctor's petition said, also failed to consult with Weinstein’s patients, review their medical records or interview any expert witness.

'Sinister implications' not supported

But Schenectady County Supreme Court Justice Thomas Buchanan, whose review was limited to determining if the board's decision was "arbitrary and capricious or an abuse of discretion," wrote in his four-page March 6 decision that "the sinister implications asserted by petitioner simply do not find support in the record."

Weinstein, Buchanan wrote, failed to prove that the board was biased against him because he was named in federal racketeering lawsuits alleging he conspired with a network of medical providers, lawyers and other individuals to collect millions of dollars in insurance payouts for bogus accident claims.

"The [Board's] denial letter cites specific shortcomings in petitioner's practices and potential adverse consequences," Buchanan wrote, while also rejecting Weinstein's request to produce additional documentation supporting his claims. 

Weinstein's attorney did not respond to requests for comment, while a board spokesman declined to comment.

In a Feb. 27 letter to the court, Paul Schafhauser, Weinstein's Manhattan-based attorney, described the stakes of the case as "enormous. Through its actions, the board has visited profound and irreparable professional and reputational harm upon petitioner. A statewide nonrenewal not only precludes petitioner from treating workers’ compensation patients, but also carries a stigma that impacts referral relationships, professional standing, and public perception."

'Professional misconduct'

On April 2, the board rejected an application by Weinstein, who also has offices in Rego Park in Queens, Manhattan and New Jersey associated with Comprehensive Orthopedic & Spine Care, that would have allowed him to continue treating patients with workers' compensation claims.

The board said at the time that it conducted investigations of four patients with workers’ compensation claims that were treated by Weinstein and found they lacked credible documentation or medical justification, exhibited billing irregularities or appeared to show a predetermined outcome on the need for highly risky surgeries without considering less invasive and more conservative treatments. Altogether, the behavior, officials wrote, amounted to "professional misconduct."

For example, Weinstein fused the spine of a 28-year-old patient involved in an alleged workplace accident, the board said, without considering less invasive and more conservative treatments.

Weinstein, who contends the surgery was needed because the patient suffered a severe spinal injury after falling 50 to 60 feet from a scaffold, appealed the board’s decision, arguing it was "riddled with inaccuracies and false conclusions and ignore or overlook pertinent patient records and treatment history."

But when the board rejected Weinstein's appeal and ordered him to cease treating workers’ compensation claimants, the surgeon filed a petition in state court in Schenectady County seeking to annul the state's denial.

A similar petition was filed in the same court last November by Dr. Vadim Lerman, associate director of spine surgery at Total Orthopedics & Sports Medicine, after the board rejected his renewal application allowing him to seek reimbursement for the treatment of injured workers.

In court documents, Weinstein alleged "collusion" between the board and the insurance companies who filed the RICO cases in New York's Eastern District and contends the state agency was looking for reasons to deny his renewal.

The RICO lawsuits allege Weinstein, along with other physicians, lawyers and financiers, fraudulently conspired to treat individuals with fake or exaggerated workplace injuries, often on construction sites, to secure large payouts from insurance companies.

The board concedes that the four cases cited in its determination letter were brought to them by a "stakeholder" in one of the RICO lawsuits, identified in court documents as James Manning, director of the Special Investigations Unit at New York City Transit. Manning has declined to comment through an MTA spokesman.

But Michael Papa, the board's general counsel, said Weinstein's claims were "entirely baseless" and that their own investigation found the surgeon performed "unnecessary, invasive, dangerous and potentially life altering treatment."

In its denial letter, the board said its medical directors’ office approved only 27% of the prior authorization requests submitted by Weinstein in 2024, intended to cover medical costs associated with certain treatments. Industrywide, the approval rate is about 54%, records state.

By Robert Brodsky

robert.brodsky@newsday.com@BrodskyRobert

Robert Brodsky is a breaking news reporter who has worked at Newsday since 2011. He is a Queens College and American University alum.