On July 19, 2012, the Department of Justice announced that Michael Cobb, a Rhode Island physician's assistant, was sentenced to one year incarceration after pleading guilty to receiving kickbacks from Orthofix, Inc. From 2004 to 2011, Orthofix paid Cobb approximately $120,000 for arranging the implantation of Orthofix bone growth stimulators. The sentence is the result of a broader investigation into Orthofix's marketing activities that has led to a series of guilty pleas. From December of 2011 to May of 2012, two Territory Managers for Orthofix pled guilty to health care fraud, a Regional Manager for Orthofix pled guilty to perjury, and a Vice President of Orthofix pled guilty to paying kickbacks. According to the Department of Justice, the investigation remains ongoing.

Read the Department of Justice press release