Columbia doctor accused of misconduct now charged in federal court

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Columbia doctor who was accused of sexual misconduct last fall has been charged in federal court.

Dr. Jonathan Morris, who owns Columbia Urgent Care on North Providence Road, is charged with 15 counts of illegally prescribing drugs and 23 counts of health care fraud. He was indicted on April 8 and was arrested on Wednesday, according to the Department of Justice. The jail he is being held at was not immediately released by authorities.

A Wednesday press release from the Department of Justice alleges Morris, 46, defrauded Medicare and Medicaid by causing them to “be billed for medical services as if they had been provided by him instead of the assistant physicians” he employs. APs are medical school students who have not entered a residency program yet, according to the release.

The release and bond memo also accuse Morris of giving prescription drugs to friends and “people suffering from substance use disorders and those with whom he had sexual relationships.”

Investigators are “are currently aware of about 20 individuals who received prescriptions for a total of over 15,000 individual dosage units of controlled substances from Morris despite the existence of substance use issues, sexual relations with Morris, or both.,” the release says.

The bond memo also makes several references to text messages he sent to alleged witnesses that he propositioned drugs and sexual favors; as well as several allegations of sexual assault, some of which were outlined in a previous Boone County discrimination case.

The bond memo says Morris “failed to properly train his APs essentially rendering the clinic a free-for-all when it comes to issuing prescriptions for controlled substances.”

ABC 17 News has reached out to the Department of Justice.