Walter Reed prosthetics chief allegedly took sports tickets
GREENBELT, Md. (AP) — A federal grand jury has indicted the former chief of prosthetics and orthotics at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.
Court records show David Laufer pleaded not guilty on Tuesday to five counts of making a false statement.
The office of the U.S. Attorney in Maryland said Wednesday that the 63-year-old Pittsburgh resident failed to report financial benefits, including travel and tickets to sporting events, he received from an unidentified company that supplied prosthetics and orthotics materials to the hospital in Bethesda.
Authorities say Laufer was the facility’s chief of prosthetics until May and was required to disclose to the government outside income sources greater than $200, travel-related reimbursements or other gifts worth more than $350.
The charging document alleges that the owner of the company based in Germantown regularly interacted with Laufer about its business with the hospital.
It also alleges Laufer falsely told federal agents that he had never received money or gifts from his department’s vendors.
Laufer’s public defender could not be reached for comment as the attorney’s name is not listed in court records.
If convicted, Laufer faces up to five years in prison for each count of making a false statement.
Two Former Walter Reed Employees Federally Charged After Allegedly Receiving Money, Gifts From Businesses That Worked With Hospital
Feb 5, 2020
BETHESDA, Md. (WJZ) — Two former Walter Reed National Military Center employees were charged after they allegedly failed to report financial gains and gifts they received from people and companies doing business with the hospital.
David Laufer, age 63, of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania was charged with five counts of making false statements. According to the indictment, Laufer worked as the Chief of the Prosthetics and Orthotics Department at Walter Reed in Bethesda until May 2019.
His job required him to complete a financial disclosure form that required him to report all sources of outside income greater than $200, any business outside the U.S. government he or his spouse was an employee or consultant, any agreements about past, present or future employment, travel-related reimbursement or gifts totaling more than $350 from any one source.
Although the indictment didn’t detail specific dollar amounts, it alleged Laufer failed to report money he received from a Germantown company that provided prosthetics and orthotics materials to Walter Reed. The company’s owner regularly communicated with Laufer about business between the company and Walter Reed, federal officials said.
Laufer told federal agents he never received money, gifts of sporting event tickets from any vendors doing business with his department, when in fact he did from the Germantown company, the indictment alleged.
A grand jury indicted Laufer on Dec. 16, 2019 and the indictment was unsealed when he was arrested on Jan. 28, 2020 …
Laufer faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison for each of the five counts of making a false statement.
Walter Reed is the largest joint military medical center in the U.S. It provided medical services including orthotic and prosthetic services to U.S. service members and their dependents, including wounded soldiers. Read more.
Pinnacle Orthopedic Services, Inc.
The supplier involved in this investigation has not been publicly confirmed.
An internet search identifies Pinnacle Orthopedic Services, established in 2010, as an orthotic and prosthetic reseller and service provider located at 21313 Glendevon Ct, Germantown, MD.
According to govtribe.com, a Federal Contract IDV Award* was awarded to Pinnacle Orthopedic Services, Inc. on May 1, 2015.
- The blanket purchase agreement is funded by the Defense Health Agency (DOD).
- The potential value of the award is $7,000,000.
- The NAICS Category for the award is 339113 – Surgical Appliance and Supplies Manufacturing.
- The PSC Category is 6515 – Medical and Surgical Instruments, Equipment, and Supplies
* Interagency acquisitions are commonly conducted through indefinite delivery vehicles (IDVs), such as task and delivery order contracts. The structure of these vehicles is well-suited to the efficiencies and economies that agencies seek through interagency acquisitions. IDVs permit the issuance of orders for the performance of tasks or the delivery of supplies against prepositioned contracts and agreements during the term of the vehicle. The IDVs used most frequently to support interagency acquisitions are multiple award schedules (MAS), government-wide acquisition contracts (GWACs), and multi-agency contracts (MACs).
Sources: http://posvc.com/about-us/, https://govtribe.com/award/federal-idv-award/blanket-purchase-agreement-ht001415a0089, https://contractingacademy.gatech.edu/tag/idv/
