THIS FORM IS TO BE USED 

ONLY BY THE SECRETARY 

TO THE BOARD OR AS 

OTHERWISE SPECIFICALLY 

DIRECTED BY THE BOARD. 

FORM NO. G-21 (9-83) 

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 

RAILROAD RETIREMENT BOARD 

TRANSCRIPT OF BOARD ORDERS 

TRANSCRIPT NO. 

Special 

PAGE I OF 6 

DATE TRANSCRrPT RELEASED 

I CERTIFY THAT THE FOLLOWING IS A TRUE AND CORRECT TRANSCRrPT 

PAGES 

OF BOARD ORDER(S) NUMBERED ___ 1_3_-_55----------------------' 

ISSUED BY THE BOARD ON ---~Sele.llpti.teleiDIWbelel:r:..._.,ll30~,,....._L.2u01L3l,-C)Ci-------- -~i-/ __ '\t----

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BOARD ORDER 13-55 

Termination of Disability Annuities 

Awarded Based on Medical Evidence from Dr. Peter Lesniewski 

ARTICLE I. PURPOSE. 

The Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) hereby establishes the policy set forth in 

this Order to govern the adjudication of all disability annuities paid under section 

2(a) of the Railroad Retirement Act, where the decision that the applicant is 

disabled was based in whole or in part upon evidence furnished by Dr. Peter 

Lesniewski. The purpose of this policy is to protect the Railroad Retirement 

Account from fraudulent claims while ensuring payment of valid disability claims. 

ARTICLE II. FINDINGS. 

A. In section 7 of the Railroad Retirement Act, Congress granted to the 

Railroad Retirement Board all powers and duties necessary to administer the 

Railroad Retirement Act. Congress declared in that provision that decisions by the 

Railroad Retirement Board upon issues of law and fact relating to annuities shall 

not be subject to review by any other administrative or accounting officer, agent or 

employee of the United States. Further, by incorporating section 5 of the Railroad 

Unemployment Insurance Act, section 7 requires that findings of fact and 

conclusions of law of the Board in the determination of any claim for benefits shall 

be binding and conclusive for all purposes and upon all such administrative or 

accounting officer, agent or employee. 
BOARD ORDER 13-55 -Page 2-

B. Pursuant to the authority granted by section 7 of the Railroad Retirement 

Act, the Railroad Retirement Board makes the following findings of fact and 

conclusions of law: 

1. The Long Island Rail Road, a covered railroad employer under the Railroad 

Retirement Act, had established a private pension plan for employees which 

provided for early retirement with a full pension at age 50 with 20 years of Long 

Island Rail Road service. This plan has subsequently been superseded by another. 

Long Island Rail Road retirees under this subsequent plan are not subject to this 

Order. 

2. A substantial number of Long Island Rail Road employees who retired under 

the now replaced Long Island Rail Road pension plan also applied for an 

occupational disability annuity under section 2(a)(1)(iv) of the Railroad Retirement 

Act. 

3. On October 27, 2011, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of 

New York filed fraud charges against two physicians, Dr. Peter Lesniewski and Dr. 

Peter J. Ajemian, one of their office managers, two individuals (facilitators) acting 

as liaison between the physicians and applicants for disability annuities under the 

Railroad Retirement Act, and seven railroad retirement disability annuitants 

(including one of the physicians' liaisons) who were also recipients ofLong Island 

Rail Road pensions. The U.S. Attorney charged that the physicians, facilitators 

and disability annuitants falsely claimed to be disabled at the time of early 

retirement under the Long Island Rail Road pension plan in order to receive extra 

benefits to which they were not entitled. Additional indictments subsequently 

issued through July 2013 bring the total number of defendants to 33. 

4. On December 20, 2011, an Indictment Order was entered finding that there 

was sufficient evidence to prosecute Dr. Lesniewski. The Grand Jury found that 

there was sufficient evidence that Dr. Lesniewski may have committed: (1) 

Conspiracy to commit mail fraud, wire fraud and healthcare fraud, (2) Conspiracy 

to defraud the United States Railroad Retirement Board, and (3) Healthcare fraud. 

5. On May 22, 2012, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of 

New York announced the creation of a Voluntary Disclosure and Disposition 

Program, which was offered to former Long Island Rail Road employees who were 

awarded a disability annuity under the Railroad Retirement Act. Employee 
BOARD ORDER 13-55 -Page 3-

Annuitants who were accepted into the Program by the U.S. Attorney were 

required to sign the following statement: 

I hereby attest that in connection with my application for Railroad 

Retirement Board disability benefits, I or doctors or others on my behalf 

made what I understood to be false and/or misleading statements with 

respect to my health condition, ability to work, and/or my eligibility for 

RRB disability benefits. I declare under penalty of perjury that my 

statements in this document are true and correct, pursuant to Title 28, United 

States Code, and Section 1746. 

A total of 44 railroad retirement disability annuitants were accepted by the 

U.S. Attorney into the Voluntary Disclosure and Disposition Program. 

6. On May 22, 2012, the Railroad Retirement Board issued Board Order 12-29, 

which set forth the processing of Agreements signed under the Voluntary 

Disclosure Program. Pursuant to Board Order 12-29, a disability annuitant who 

signed an Agreement was considered to have cancelled his or her disability 

application. Board Order 12-29 considered that payments made under the 

cancelled application were recovered by a compromise in exchange for 

information provided to the U.S. Attorney by the annuitant. 

7. Several former Long Island Rail Road employees who have pled guilty to 

making false statements regarding their abilities furnished medical evidence from 

Dr. Lesniewski to support their benefit claims. 

8. In the transcript testimony by Dr. Peter Ajemian in the guilty plea 

proceeding on January 18, 2013, in the case entitled United States of America v. 

Peter Ajemian, et al., U.S. District Court, Southern District ofNew York, No. 11 

Cr. 1091, Dr. Ajemian testified under oath that sometime about 2002 he began 

seeing large numbers of employees of the Long Island Rail Road, and during the 

period 2004 to 2008 he prepared narratives reciting a medical basis for disability 

annuity claims when "in truth and in fact these employees were not in fact 

disabled." 

9. On May 7, 2013, a Superseding Indictment was filed finding sufficient 

evidence to charge Dr. Lesniewski with committing: (1) Conspiracy to commit 

mail fraud, and health care fraud, (2) Conspiracy to defraud the United States 
BOARD ORDER 13-55 -Page 4-

Railroad Retirement Board, (3) Health care fraud, (4) Mail fraud, and (5) Wire 

fraud. 

10. On May 24, 2013, the District Court sentenced Dr. Ajemian to eight years 

for conspiracy and health care fraud. The Board notes that Dr. Ajemian was 

ordered to make restitution of $116.5 million. In the Statement by the Court 

Regarding the Defendant's Sentence, the Court noted that Dr. Ajemian engaged in 

the charged offenses for more than 10 years, from 1997 to 2008. Dr. Ajemian 

submitted medical reports compiled for each claimant over a period of time during 

which he performed unnecessary or bogus medical tests and fabricated treatments 

and narrative paper work, all pre-planned and packaged to justify what essentially 

amounted to a predetermined recommendation that the employee was disabled. 

11. On June 27, 2013, the Railroad Retirement Board issued Board Order 13-33. 

Based on findings set forth in that Order, the Board determined that any 

application by any applicant of at least age 50 with at least 20 years of creditable 

railroad service which includes medical evidence supplied by Dr. Peter J. Ajemian 

was invalid and must be re-filed. 

12. On July 15, 2013, the trial began in the matter of United States of America 

v. Peter Lesniewski, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, No. 11 

CR 1091. 

13. During the trial, Joseph Del Favero, Deputy Assistant Inspector General for 

Investigations, Railroad Retirement Board Office of Inspector General (RRB OIG), 

testified on behalf of the United States of America. Agent Del Favero stated that 

he and Louis Rossignuolo, Assistant Inspector General for Investigation, RRB 

OIG, interviewed Dr. Lesniewski on October 29, 2008. Agent Del Favero 

testified that Dr. Lesniewski admitted that he knew that he was seeing Long Island 

Rail Road (LIRR) patients so that they could receive disability benefits under the 

Railroad Retirement Act (RRA). Agent Del Favero also testified that during the 

October 29 interview, Dr. Lesniewski executed a signed statement in which he 

admitted that in order to ensure that the LIRR patients would receive an 

occupational disability annuity under the RRA, he would put a phrase in his 

narrative reports that said, "it can be stated with a reasonable degree of medical 

certainty that the patient is disabled for his occupation with the Long Island 

Railroad." Dr. Lesniewski further admitted that although the MRI tests had 

minimal findings, he would insert subjective, not objective, fmdings of pain. Dr. 
BOARD ORDER 13-55 -Page 5-

Lesniewski also admitted that he knew that by inserting this language he would 

also aid the LIRR patients in receiving an occupational disability annuity under the 

RRA. Agent Del Favero further testified that Dr. Lesniewski stated he charged 

LIRR patients a fee ranging from $850.00 to $1,000.00 for fraudulent assessments 

and narratives. Dr. Lesniewski's signed statement, with hearsay evidence redacted, 

was entered into evidence in the trial. 

14. On behalf of the U.S. Government, Dr. Otis Alton Barron, Jr., an orthopedic 

surgeon, testified as an expert medical witness at the trial. Dr. Barron testified that 

he reviewed medical reports completed by Dr. Lesniewski, MRI reports and other 

tests results. Dr. Barron found that Dr. Lesniewski's diagnoses contradicted the 

objective evidence. Dr. Barron further testified that there was no evidence of 

physical examinations to support Dr. Lesniewski's diagnoses. In Dr. Barron's 

opinion, Dr. Lesniewski did not provide "meaningful" treatments. Dr. Barron also 

testified that in some cases, some impairments were non-disabling and could, in 

most cases, be treated. 

15. On August 6, 2013, based on testimony and evidence including that 

summarized above, Dr. Lesniewski was convicted of one count of conspiracy to 

commit mail fraud, wire fraud, health care fraud, and conspiracy to defraud the 

RRB. Dr. Lesniewski was also convicted of two counts of health care fraud, two 

counts of mail fraud, and four counts of wire fraud. 

16. Section 5 of the Railroad Retirement Act requires that an application for any 

payment under the Act shall be made and filed in such manner and form as the 

Board may prescribe. 

17. Dr. Lesniewski recommended more than 130 LIRR employees for disability 

benefits under the RRA. As Dr. Lesniewski was convicted of conspiracy to 

defraud the RRB, the Board therefore finds that any application by any applicant of 

at least age 50 with at least 20 years of creditable railroad service which includes 

medical evidence supplied by Dr. Lesniewski is invalid and must be re-filed. 
BOARD ORDER 13-55 -Page 6-

ARTICLE III. DIRECTIONS TO AGENCY STAFF 

1. The Director of Programs shall review the claims of Long Island Rail Road 

pension recipients who are currently receiving an annuity under the Railroad 

Retirement Act on the basis of disability, and shall identify the claims filed at age 

50 or later with 20 years of railroad service which considered medical evidence 

from Dr. Lesniewski. Disability annuities are converted to retirement annuities 

based on age when the annuitant attains "full retirement age" as defined under the 

Social Security Act. 

2. The Director of Programs shall notify each employee annuitant that pursuant 

to this Order, the employee annuitant's payment will end the last day of the month 

following the third month following the date of the notice. Where the employee 

annuitant has been determined to be entitled to Medicare, the employee annuitant 

shall be notified that Medicare entitlement will end as well. Where a spouse 

annuity has been awarded, the spouse annuitant shall be notified that payment will 

end with the month the employee annuity payment ends. 

3. The Director of Programs shall notify each employee annuitant that if he or 

she believes that he or she is disabled or is otherwise eligible for an age and service 

annuity, a new application may be filed. In a determination based on a new 

application, the Director of Programs shall not consider any evidence furnished by 

Dr. Lesniewski. All benefit determinations will be made under the law on the basis 

of the new application, except that an employee annuity applicant determined to 

have a "current connection" as defined by the Railroad Retirement Act at the time 

of the initial application shall be determined to have retained the current 

connection at the time a new application is filed under this Order. 

4. Without regard to whether the employee annuitant pursues an administrative 

appeal of the termination of the disability annuity based on Dr. Lesniewski's 

evidence, or files a new application based on current evidence, payments for 

months prior to the month of termination of entitlement based upon the first 

application shall not be reopened. 

ARTICLE IV. DELEGATION OF AUTHORITY 

The Director of Programs is authorized to issue such internal agency procedure and 

guidance as necessary to implement this Order.####