A glamorous Los Angeles-area Botox doctor has been convicted of submitting more than $45 million in fraudulent Medicare claims. Violetta Mailyan, 45, of Glendale, was found guilty on nine counts of wire fraud and three counts of obstruction of a criminal investigation of a health care offense for her scheme to fraudulently bill Medicare for Botox injections she never administered, according to Fox News.
The Fraudulent Scheme
Prosecutors alleged in their indictment last year that Mailyan billed for medically unnecessary injections at her clinic, Healthy Way Medical Center, from January 2019 through August 2025 before the Department of Justice's (DOJ) Health Care Fraud Section's Data Analytics Team identified the irregularities. The DOJ discovered that Mailyan had received more payments from Medicare for Botox injections than any other doctor in the entire United States.
In total, the team found that Mailyan was paid over $24 million from the federal program over four years—six times the amount received by the next highest group of doctors, all of whom were neurologists. She used those funds to take lavish vacations and purchase luxury collectibles, including a $3,000 painting of Ludwig I, crown prince of Bavaria, and a $12,000 17th-century crossbow.
Statements from Officials
'Violetta Mailyan falsely diagnosed patients, fraudulently billed Medicare for Botox injections while she was actually on lavish vacations and tried to trick federal agents with fake records,' said Assistant Attorney General Colin McDonald of the Justice Department's National Fraud Enforcement Division. 'The Fraud Division's data-driven approach shines a light on fraud schemes across the country, ensuring that no doctor can engage in these brazen schemes to steal taxpayer dollars.'
Details of the Fraud
Medicare typically only reimburses medical providers for Botox injections when they are deemed necessary to treat documented cases of chronic migraines or for muscle issues after a patient has tried all other treatments. However, Mailyan billed the federal program for Botox injections that were administered solely for cosmetic reasons or given to patients whose primary care doctors had not referred them for the treatment. On social media, she described herself as a 'BOTOX FILLER NONSURGICAL NOSE COSMETIC DOCTOR.'
Prosecutors said Mailyan billed Medicare for injections that were administered while she was traveling to Cabo, Mexico; Maui, Hawaii; Las Vegas, Nevada; Pennsylvania; and New York. Some injections were listed as having taken place on dates when Healthy Way was not even open, or when the patients listed as receiving the treatment were on vacation. In one case, Mailyan claimed she treated a patient who was incarcerated in federal prison at the time. For these injections, Medicare had paid Mailyan nearly $32.9 million.
Obstruction and Aftermath
When Mailyan learned that federal prosecutors were investigating her scheme, she falsified patient medical records—including patient consent forms—to make it appear as if the patients had received migraine treatments in her office. She went as far as backdating some claims to bill for injections before the patients had even contacted Healthy Way to set up an appointment. Mailyan now faces up to 20 years in prison for each of the nine counts of wire fraud and five years in prison for each of the three obstruction charges. Prosecutors also sought forfeiture of her property, funds, a Tesla Model X, and a Tesla Cybertruck. A sentencing date has not yet been set.
