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Criminal and Civil Enforcement

December 2018

December 21, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
United States Joins False Claims Act Lawsuit Against Wheeling Hospital, R & V Associates, and Ronald Violi Based on Improper Payments and Kickbacks to Physicians
The United States has partially intervened in a lawsuit under the False Claims Act against Wheeling Hospital Inc. (Wheeling), R & V Associates Ltd. (R & V), and Ronald Violi in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, the Department of Justice announced today. The government intervened with respect to allegations that Wheeling, which is located in Wheeling, WV, violated the Stark Law and Anti-Kickback Statute, and that those violations were caused by R & V, Wheeling's contracted management consultant, and Violi, Wheeling's CEO.
December 20, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Western District of New York
Daycare Owner Sentenced For Stealing Government Funds
BUFFALO, N.Y.-U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Tariq Butt, 42, of Buffalo, NY, who was convicted of theft of government funds, was sentenced to serve 12 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Lawrence J. Vilardo. The defendant was also ordered to pay restitution totaling $305,000 to the Department of Health and Human Services.
December 20, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Middle District of Florida
Fort Myers Doctor Agrees To Pay More Than $1.7 Million To Resolve Allegations Of Fraud
Fort Myers, FL - United States Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez announces that Dr. Jonathan Daitch, M.D. has agreed to a civil settlement that will pay $1.718 million to the United States to resolve allegations that he violated the False Claims Act by receiving illegal kickbacks associated with the provision of anesthesia services and by causing the submission of medically unnecessary urine tests.
December 19, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
Eight Dallas-Area Pharmacy Owners and Marketers Charged in $9 Million Kickback Scheme
Eight Dallas, Texas-area pharmacy owners and marketers were charged in an indictment unsealed today for their roles in a scheme involving approximately $92 million in compound drug claims to TRICARE and the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), which were allegedly the product of over $9.1 million in illegal kickbacks.
December 18, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
Miami-Area Pharmacy Owner Sentenced to Over Seven Years in Prison for Role in $8.4 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme
The owner of a Miami, Florida-area pharmacy who caused Medicare to pay more than $8.4 million over a six-year period for prescription drugs that were never provided to beneficiaries was sentenced today to 87 months in prison.
December 18, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Southern District of Texas
Local Nurse Heads to Prison for Healthcare Fraud and Kickback Convictions
HOUSTON - A 51-year old nurse from Sugar Land is headed to federal prison following his convictions of conspiracy to commit health care fraud, six counts of health care fraud and conspiracy to violate the anti-kickback statute, announced U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Patrick. A federal jury returned the guilty verdicts against John Dubor May 17, 2018, after deliberating less than six hours following a three-day trial.
December 18, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Columbia
Maryland Woman Charged With Health Care Fraud
WASHINGTON - A Maryland woman who was employed as a personal care aide has been charged with scheming to submit false claims to the District of Columbia's Medicaid program.
December 18, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of New Hampshire
Former Physician Assistant Convicted In Kickback Scheme
Concord - United States Attorney Scott W. Murray announced that a federal jury found Christopher Clough, 44, of Dover, New Hampshire guilty of participating in a scheme in which he received kickbacks in exchange for prescribing a powerful fentanyl spray to patients in violation of federal law.
December 17, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
Miami-Area Woman Sentenced to Over Six Years in Prison for Role in $4.65 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme
A Miami, Florida-area woman was sentenced to 78 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release today for her role in a $4.65 million health care fraud scheme involving three home health agencies that purported to provide home health services to Medicare patients.
December 14, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
Pharmacy Owner Convicted in Medicare Fraud Scheme
A federal jury in Los Angeles, California found a pharmacy owner guilty today for her role in a Medicare fraud scheme involving more than $1.3 million in fraudulent claims for prescription drugs.
December 14, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Middle District of Tennessee
Former CEO of Nashville Company Charged With Healthcare Fraud and Aggravated Identity Theft
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - December 14, 2018 - Margaret Fisher, 60, formerly of Nashville, Tennessee, was arrested yesterday by United States Marshals in Williston, North Dakota and charged with four counts of healthcare fraud and two counts of aggravated identity theft, announced U.S. Attorney Don Cochran for the Middle District of Tennessee.
December 14, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Montana
Browning woman admits embezzlement of Blackfeet Tribe's Head Start program
GREAT FALLS-Browning resident Denise L. Sharp, 60, who worked for the Blackfeet Tribe's Head Start Program, admitted in federal court on Tuesday to stealing money through an overall scheme involving others in which an estimated $232,000 was fraudulently claimed as overtime pay, U.S. Attorney Kurt G. Alme said.
December 14, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Middle District of Tennessee
45-Count Indictment Charges Clarksville, Tennessee Physician With Massive Opioid Distribution and Healthcare Fraud Scheme
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - December 14, 2018 - A 45-count federal indictment was unsealed yesterday, charging Dr. Samson Orusa, 56, of Clarksville, Tennessee with maintaining a drug-involved premises; 22 counts of unlawful distribution of a controlled substance outside the bounds of professional medical practice; 13 counts of healthcare fraud; and nine counts of money laundering, announced U.S. Attorney Don Cochran for the Middle District of Tennessee.
December 13, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Connecticut
Bridgeport Woman Admits Role in Medicaid Fraud Scheme
John H. Durham, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that TOSHIREA JACKSON, 49, of Bridgeport, waived her right to be indicted and pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Victor A. Bolden in Bridgeport to one count of health care fraud.
December 13, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Pennsylvania
Hospice Care Provider Pays Nearly $6 Million to Resolve False Claims Act Allegations
PHILADELPHIA - U.S. Attorney William M. McSwain announced today that SouthernCare, Inc., a hospice care provider, has agreed to pay $5,863,426 to the federal government to resolve allegations that the company violated the False Claims Act by submitting claims to Medicare for hospice care that was medically unnecessary or lacked documentation.
December 11, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Government Intervenes in False Claims Act Lawsuit Against Sutter Health and Palo Alto Medical Foundation for Mischarging the Medicare Advantage Program
The United States has intervened in a complaint against Sutter Health LLC, a California-based healthcare services provider, and an affiliated entity, Palo Alto Medical Foundation, (collectively "Sutter") that alleges that Sutter violated the False Claims Act by submitting inaccurate information about the health status of beneficiaries enrolled in Medicare Advantage Plans, the Justice Department announced today. Sutter Health is headquartered in Sacramento, California.
December 11, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Northern District of New York
Audiology Practice with Locations Throughout Central New York to Pay More Than $566,000 to Settle False Claims Act Claims
ALBANY, NEW YORK - Oviatt Hearing and Balance, LLC (Oviatt), which operates audiology practices in Syracuse, Camillus, Manlius, and Oswego, New York, has agreed to pay $566,263.08 to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by falsely billing the federal government for services rendered by unlicensed individuals and by inappropriately providing gift cards and other inducements to Medicare and TRICARE beneficiaries. The announcement was made by United States Attorney Grant C. Jaquith and Scott J. Lampert, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General's New York Region (HHS-OIG).
December 11, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Maine
Rockport Man Pleads Guilty to Health Care Fraud and Embezzlement
Portland, Maine: United States Attorney Halsey B. Frank announced that Michael A. Morrison, 42, of Rockland, Maine, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to health care fraud and embezzlement from a health care benefit program.
December 11, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Nevada
Nevada Pain Management Doctor Pleads Guilty To Unlawful Distribution Of Opioids
LAS VEGAS, Nev. - A Las Vegas pain management doctor pleaded guilty Monday in federal court for unlawfully prescribing opioids, announced U.S. Attorney Dayle Elieson of the District of Nevada.
December 11, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Pennsylvania
Coordinated Health and CEO Pay $12.5 Million to Resolve False Claims Act Liability for Fraudulent Billing
PHILADELPHIA, PA - United States Attorney William M. McSwain announced today that Coordinated Health Holding Company, LLC ("Coordinated Health") and its founder, principal owner, and Chief Executive Officer, Emil DiIorio, M.D., agreed to settle allegations under the False Claims Act that they submitted false claims to Medicare and other federal health care programs for orthopedic surgeries. Coordinated Health agreed to pay $11.25 million and DiIorio agreed personally to pay $1.25 million, for total settlement of $12.5 million. Coordinated Health has also entered into a Corporate Integrity Agreement with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services that will require regular monitoring of its billing practices for five years.
December 11, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Wisconsin
Aurora Health Care, Inc. Agrees to Pay $12 Million to Settle Allegations Under the False Claims Act and the Stark Law
United States Attorney Matthew D. Krueger announced today that Aurora Health Care, Inc. ("Aurora") has agreed to pay $12 million to the United States and State of Wisconsin to settle allegations that Aurora violated the False Claims Act by submitting claims to Medicare and Medicaid in violation of the Stark Law. Aurora and its affiliates ("Aurora") are part of Advocate Aurora Health, Inc., an integrated health care system that serves patients throughout eastern Wisconsin, Illinois, and the upper peninsula of Michigan.
December 10, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Olympus Medical Systems Corporation, Former Senior Executive Plead Guilty to Distributing Endoscopes After Failing to File FDA-Required Adverse Event Reports of Serious Infections
Olympus Medical Systems Corporation (Olympus) and a former senior executive in Japan pleaded guilty today in Newark, New Jersey, to failing to file required adverse event reports involving infections connected to duodenoscopes, and to continuing to sell the duodenoscopes in the United States despite those failures, the Justice Department announced today.
December 10, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Northern District of Illinois
Federal Grand Jury Indicts Doctor for Allegedly Approving Medically Unnecessary Tests Billed to Medicare
CHICAGO - A federal grand jury in Chicago has indicted a physician on fraud charges for allegedly approving medically unnecessary diagnostic tests that were billed to Medicare.
December 10, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Northern District of Oklahoma
Three Charged with Violating Federal Anti-Kickback Laws and Committing More Than $4.7 Million in Health Care Fraud
TULSA, Okla.- A grand jury returned an indictment today charging three men, including two physicians, with violations of the federal anti-kickback statute as well as conspiring to commit health care fraud, announced U.S. Attorney Trent Shores.
December 10, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Southern District of New York
Unlicensed Dentist Convicted Of Healthcare Fraud, Conspiracy To Commit Healthcare Fraud, And Conspiracy To Violate The Anti-Kickback Statute
Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that LUIS OMAR VARGAS, an unlicensed dentist, was convicted last Friday, after a two-week jury trial, for defrauding health insurance companies by billing for false claims, billing for claims performed by him as an unlicensed provider, and for conspiring to pay kickbacks to his patients. The trial was presided over by United States District Judge Ronnie Abrams.
December 7, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
South Florida Pharmacy Owner Sentenced to Almost Four Years in Prison for Role in $2.5 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme
An owner of a now-defunct Miami pharmacy was sentenced today to 46 months in prison for his participation in a scheme that caused Medicare to pay $2.5 million in false and fraudulent claims for prescription drugs that were never purchased.
December 7, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Virginia Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
Former Owner of Sleep Study Businesses Sentenced for Fraud
ALEXANDRIA, Va. - A Sterling woman was sentenced today to 7 years in prison for health care fraud and tax charges for operating a fraudulent sleep study clinic in Northern Virginia.
December 7, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Western District of Pennsylvania
Three Pittsburgh Residents Plead Guilty to Conspiracy to Commit Health Care Fraud
PITTSBURGH, Pa. - Three residents of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty in federal court this week to conspiracy to defraud the Pennsylvania Medicaid program, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
December 7, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Maryland
Former Maryland Physician Agrees to Pay $400,000 to the United States to Resolve Allegations of Fraudulent Billing for Psychotherapy Services
Baltimore, Maryland - M. Wagdi Attia, M.D., a physician who until April 1, 2018 had a medical practice in Gaithersburg, Maryland, has agreed to pay the United States $400,000 to resolve allegations that from January 1, 2013 through May 31, 2017, Dr. Attia fraudulently billed Medicare and Medicaid for services not rendered.
December 7, 2018; US. Attorney; Eastern District of North Carolina
Two More Health Care Executives Plead Guilty in Connection with Medicaid Behavioral Health Fraud
RALEIGH - United States Attorney Robert J. Higdon, Jr. announced that today in federal court, LISA CAROL RAYMOND, 55, of Greenville, North Carolina, and ROBERT PAUL MAGLICIC, JR., 36, of Miami, Florida, pleaded guilty before Chief United States District Judge Terrence W. Boyle, to the charge of Conspiracy to Commit Health Care fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1349.
December 7, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Northern District of Texas
Woman Admits Defrauding Medicaid a Second Time, This Time from Prison
In 2015, Alexis C. Norman pleaded guilty to healthcare fraud. But while awaiting sentencing, she concocted another healthcare fraud scheme.
December 4, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Medical Device Maker ev3 to Plead Guilty and Pay $17.9 Million for Distributing Adulterated Device; Covidien Paid $13 Million to Resolve Civil Liability for Second Device
Minnesota-based medical device manufacturer ev3 Inc. has agreed to plead guilty to charges related to its neurovascular medical device, Onyx Liquid Embolic System, and pay $17.9 million, the Department of Justice announced today. Covidien LP, whose parent acquired ev3, separately paid $13 million to resolve False Claims Act allegations resulting from its alleged payment of kickbacks in connection with another medical device, the Solitaire mechanical thrombectomy device.
December 4, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
Florida Home Health Services Company Owner and Co-Conspirator Plead Guilty for Roles in $8.6 Million Health Care Fraud Scheme
Two Miami, Florida residents pleaded guilty today to health care fraud charges for their roles in an $8.6 million health care fraud scheme.
December 3, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Missouri
Home Healthcare Worker Pleads Guilty to Billing Medicaid While on a Cruise Ship
St. Louis, MO - Demagio Smith, 28, of St. Louis, Missouri, pled guilty to conspiracy to make false statements to Medicaid. In his plea agreement, Smith admitted that he repeatedly submitted false time sheets to Medicaid that suggested that he was working as a home health care aide during 2013-17, and was taking care of two women inside their homes. In reality, Smith was actually working at another job or traveling outside of Missouri on the dates and times indicated in his time sheets. Smith's out of town trips included travel to California, New Jersey, the Virgin Islands, and a voyage on a Caribbean cruise ship. Sentencing for Mr. Smith is set for March 6, 2019.

November 2018

November 29, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
South Florida Pharmacist Sentenced to Over Six Years in Prison for Role in $5 Million Compounding Pharmacy Scheme
A South Florida pharmacist was sentenced to 78 months in prison today for his role in a $5 million compounding pharmacy scheme.
November 28, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Northern District of West Virginia
Physicians pay more than $1.5 million to government for kickback scheme
WHEELING, WEST VIRGINIA - Four physicians from three states have settled with the United States Government for their roles in a kickback scheme that included West Virginia physicians, United States Attorney Bill Powell announced.
November 28, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of South Carolina
Mount Pleasant Speech Therapist Sentenced to Over 9 Years in Federal Prison for Health Care Fraud and Aggravated Identity Theft
Charleston, South Carolina---- United States Attorney Sherri A. Lydon announced today that Gena Randolph, 44, of Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, was sentenced to over 9 years in federal prison for executing a health care fraud scheme over the course of almost five years.
November 27, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Louisiana Physician's Assistant Pleads Guilty to Scheme to Unlawfully Distribute Controlled Substances
A Baton Rouge, Louisiana-based physician's assistant pleaded guilty today for his role in a scheme to unlawfully distribute thousands of oxycodone pills.
November 27, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Western District of Pennsylvania
Twelve Individuals Charged in Extensive Healthcare Fraud Conspiracy to Defraud Medicaid Home Care Program
PITTSBURGH, Pa. - Ten residents of Western Pennsylvania, a resident of Georgia, and a resident of South Carolina were charged by a federal grand jury in a 22-count indictment related to a years-long conspiracy to defraud the Pennsylvania Medicaid program, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
November 27, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Louisiana
Four Sentenced for Involvement in Local Pill Mill
NEW ORLEANS - U.S. Attorney Peter G. Strasser announced that AMANDA JEPPE, age 34, ALAN GREGOIRE, age 36, CHANTELL EVERS, age 28, and JESSIE EVERS, age 28, were sentenced today after previously pleading guilty for their roles in an oxycodone conspiracy stemming from a pill mill that operated out of Gulf South Physician's Group in Metairie.
November 27, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Massachusetts
Medford Woman Pleads Guilty to Social Security, Medicare, MassHealth and Food Stamp Fraud
BOSTON - A Medford woman pleaded guilty today in federal court in Boston to fraudulently receiving Social Security disability benefits, Medicare, MassHealth and Food Stamps.
November 26, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Nevada
Nevada Cardiologist Pleads Guilty To Unlawful Distribution Of Oxycodone And Hydrocodone
RENO, Nev. - A northern Nevada cardiologist pleaded guilty today to distributing highly addictive prescription drugs Oxycodone and Hydrocodone to patients without a medical purpose, announced U.S. Attorney Dayle Elieson for the District of Nevada.
November 26, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of South Carolina
Lexington Therapy Practice Agrees to Pay $200,000 to Resolve Allegations That It Submitted False Claims to Medicare and Medicaid
COLUMBIA, South Carolina ---- United States Attorney Sherri A. Lydon announced today that Vital Energy Occupational Therapy and Wellness Center, LLC, headquartered in Lexington, South Carolina, has agreed to pay $200,000 to resolve allegations that it knowingly submitted false or fraudulent claims to Medicare and Medicaid for physical and occupational therapy services.
November 21, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
Two Dallas Area Clinic Workers Charged in $5.9 Million Health Care Fraud Scheme
A federal grand jury indicted two clinic workers yesterday for their roles in a scheme involving approximately $5.9 million in allegedly fraudulent Department of Labor claims for unprovided drug screening and improperly coded physical therapy and report writing services.
November 20, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
Louisiana Doctor Pleads Guilty to Conspiring to Receive Health Care Kickback Payments
A Baton Rouge, Louisiana-based doctor pleaded guilty today for his role in a scheme to receive approximately $336,000 in illegal health care kickback payments.
November 19, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Western District of Pennsylvania
2nd SKS Associates Doctor Pleads Guilty to Unlawfully Dispensing Controlled Substances, Health Care Fraud
PITTSBURGH, PA - A prescribing physician with SKS Associates, an opioid treatment facility located in Johnstown, Pa., waived indictment and pleaded guilty in federal court to charges of distribution of controlled substances, conspiracy to distribute controlled substances and health care fraud, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
November 16, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Nevada
Burlington, New Jersey, Doctor Arrested for Role in $20 Million Telemedicine Compounded Medication Scheme
NEWARK, N.J. - A Burlington, New Jersey, man was arrested Friday for his role in a telemedicine scheme to prescribe expensive compounded medications to patients who did not need them, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.
November 15, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Michigan
Detroit Doctor, Office Manager and Patient Recruiter Charged with Illegal Distribution of Prescription Drugs
An indictment was unsealed today charging Dr. Otis Leon Crawford, D.O., and two other individuals with conspiracy to illegally distribute prescription drugs, U.S. Attorney Matthew Schneider announced today.
November 14, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
Detroit Clinic Owner Sentenced to Over 13 Years in Prison for $8.9 Million Health Care Fraud Scheme
The owner of two Detroit-area clinics was sentenced to 160 months in prison today for her role in a scheme involving approximately $8.9 million in fraudulent Medicare claims for home health care and other physician services that were procured through the payment of kickbacks, were not medically necessary, were not actually provided, or were provided by an unlicensed physician.
November 14, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Milwaukee Resident Convicted of Prescription Fraud and Aggravated ID Theft in Scheme to Obtain Oxycodone
United States Attorney Matthew D. Krueger announced today that Kameka Simpson, 43, of Milwaukee, pleaded guilty in federal district court to one count of obtaining controlled substances (oxycodone) by fraud, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Section 843(a)(3), and one count of aggravated identity theft, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1028A(a)(1). The indictment against Simpson and others, returned by the grand jury earlier this year, was part of a larger National Healthcare Fraud and Opioid Takedown coordinated by the Department of Justice and the Department of Health and Human Services.
November 7, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
Co-Owners of Miami Pain Management Clinic and Patient Recruiter Sentenced to Prison for Scheme to Distribute Medically Unnecessary Opioid Prescriptions
The husband and wife co-owners of a Miami, Florida pain management clinic and a patient recruiter who doubled as a drug diverter were sentenced to prison today for their participation in a scheme to unlawfully distribute thousands of pills of oxycodone.
November 7, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Maryland
Maryland Treatment Centers Agrees to Pay $500,000 to Resolve Allegations That It Submitted Claims for Services That Were Undocumented or Not Provided
Baltimore, Maryland - Maryland Treatment Centers has agreed to pay the United States $500,000 to settle allegations under the False Claims Act that it submitted false claims to the United States for mental health and substance abuse services that were undocumented or not provided. Maryland Treatment Centers, including its affiliate Mountain Manor Treatment Centers, offers mental health and substance abuse services to children and adults in outpatient and inpatient locations in Maryland, including Baltimore and Rockville.
November 7, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Southern District of Texas
Katy Woman Sentenced in Health Care Fraud and Kickback Schemes
HOUSTON - The owner of three Houston area clinics has been ordered to federal prison following her conviction of conspiracy to commit health care fraud, announced U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Patrick. Joy Aneke, 51, of Katy, entered her plea on May 16, 2018.
November 6, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Western District of Kentucky
$5.1 Million Dollar Settlement Reached With Indiana Dental Firm To Resolve False Claims Allegations
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - United States Attorney Russell M. Coleman announced today that ImmediaDent of Indiana, LLC (ImmediaDent), which operates nine dental care practices in Indiana, and Kansas based Samson Dental Partners, LLC (SDP), which provides administrative support services to ImmediaDent, have agreed to pay the United States and the State of Indiana $5.139 million to resolve allegations that they improperly billed Indiana's Medicaid program for dental services; the companies have been determined to continue to be a high risk to the United States health care programs and their beneficiaries.
November 5, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
Patient Recruiter Convicted in $1.1 Million Kickback Scheme
On Friday, Nov. 2, a federal jury found a patient recruiter guilty for her role in a scheme involving approximately $1.1 million in fraudulent Medicare claims for home health care that were procured through the payment of kickbacks.
November 2, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Southern District of New York
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Announces $2 Million Settlement Of Health Care Fraud Claims Against Metropolitan Retina Associates, Inc., And Dr. Kenneth Felder
Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Scott J. Lampert, Special Agent in Charge for the New York Office of Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services ("HHS-OIG"), announced today a settlement of a civil fraud lawsuit against DR. KENNETH S. FELDER ("FELDER") and METROPOLITAN RETINA ASSOCIATES, INC. ("METROPOLITAN RETINA"). The settlement resolves claims under the False Claims Act alleging that FELDER and METROPOLITAN RETINA billed Medicare and Medicaid for (1) substandard fluorescein angiography tests that were of such poor quality that they lacked all diagnostic value and were effectively worthless; and (2) ophthalmic ultrasounds that were either not performed or lacked any supporting documentation. Under the terms of the settlement approved by U.S. District Judge Alison J. Nathan, FELDER and METROPOLITAN RETINA admitted and accepted responsibility for their conduct and agreed to pay $2,064,559 to the United States.
November 2, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Southern District of Ohio
Doctor Practicing in Dublin Charged with Health Care Fraud, Distributing Controlled Substance Through Pain Cream Scheme and Suboxone Clinic
COLUMBUS, Ohio - A federal grand jury has charged a Central Ohio doctor with charges related to a health care fraud scheme that included marketing prescription creams in Sav-a-Lot and low-income neighborhoods and persistently mailing those creams to Medicaid customers, as well as prescribing and distributing Suboxone without medical necessity.

October 2018

October 31, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Kentucky
London Cardiologist Sentenced to 42 Months for Health Care Fraud
LONDON, Ky. - Yesterday, London physician Dr. Anis Chalhoub was sentenced, by U.S. District Court Judge Gregory F. Van Tatenhove, to serve 42 months in federal prison for health care fraud. In April 2018, a federal jury returned a guilty verdict, after hearing evidence that Dr. Chalhoub defrauded Medicare, Medicaid, and other insurers by implanting medically unnecessary pacemakers in his patients, and causing the unnecessary procedures and follow-up care to be billed to health insurance programs.
October 30, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
Two Home Health Agency Owners and Two Employees Convicted for Roles in $3.7 Million Home Health Fraud Scheme
A federal jury found two home health owners and two employees guilty today for their roles in a scheme to bill Medicare and Medicaid for over $3.7 million in charges when the owners had previously been excluded from participating in federal health care benefit programs.
October 30, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Middle District of Alabama
Montgomery Nurse Practitioner Convicted of Unlawfully Distributing Controlled Substances, Health Care Fraud, and Conspiracy
Montgomery, Alabama - On Monday, October 29, 2018, a federal jury convicted nurse practitioner Lilian Ifeoma Akwuba, 39, of Montgomery, Alabama, on 17 counts of unlawfully distributing controlled substances, 4 counts of health care fraud, 1 count of conspiring to distribute controlled substances, and 1 count of conspiring to commit health care fraud, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr.
October 26, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Northern District of West Virginia
Hancock County addiction center co-owner admits to illegally selling suboxone
CLARKSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA - Eric Drake, of Weirton, West Virginia, has admitted to illegally distributing controlled substances, United States Attorney Bill Powell announced.
October 25, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Nevada
Doctor Sentenced To Prison For Role In Conspiracy To Distribute Hydrocodone And Oxycodone Without A Medical Purpose
LAS VEGAS, Nev. - A Las Vegas, Nevada, doctor was sentenced today to 12 months and one day in prison for his role in a prescription drug conspiracy to distribute hydrocodone and oxycodone by allowing his co-conspirators to write illegal opioid prescriptions using his pre-signed prescription pad.
October 24, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Pennsylvania
United States Obtains $3 Million Consent Judgment and Federal Healthcare Exclusions to Settle Civil Complaint Alleging Fraud By Operators of Community Mental Health Clinics
PHILADELPHIA - U.S. Attorney William M. McSwain announced that United States District Judge Jeffrey L. Schmehl entered a $3 million consent judgment against Melchor Martinez, Melissa Chlebowski, both of Allentown, PA, and their businesses, as follows: Northeast Community Mental Health Centers (in Philadelphia); Lehigh Valley Community Mental Health Centers (in Allentown, Easton, and Bethlehem); and Carolina Community Mental Health Centers (in Raleigh, North Carolina).
October 24, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Michigan
Physician Charged in a $32 Million Illegal Opioid Distribution Conspiracy
An indictment was unsealed today charging the owner and sole practitioner of a medical clinic with conspiracy to illegally distribute prescription drugs, U.S. Attorney Matthew Schneider announced today.
October 24, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Western District of Pennsylvania
Passavant Memorial Homes and Subsidiaries Settle False Claims Act Allegations
PITTSBURGH - Passavant Memorial Homes, together with its subsidiaries Passavant Development Corporation, PDC Pharmacy Pittsburgh, PDC Pharmacy Philadelphia, and PDC Pharmacy Colorado, have agreed to pay the United States $1,850,000 to settle False Claims Act and Controlled Substances Act allegations, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady
October 24, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Columbia
Two Maryland Women Arrested on Federal Charges Alleging They Defrauded D.C Medicaid Program
WASHINGTON - Two Maryland women who were employed as personal care aides were arrested today on separate federal charges. Both are charged with engaging in a scheme in which they allegedly submitted a combined $1.7 million in false claims to the District of Columbia's Medicaid program.
October 23, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Vascular Access Centers to Pay at Least $3.825 Million to Resolve False Claims Act Allegations
Philadelphia-based Vascular Access Centers L.P., along with its 23 subsidiary and related corporations (collectively "VAC"), has agreed to pay at least $3.825 million to resolve claims that it violated the False Claims Act by billing Medicare for non-reimbursable vascular access procedures performed on End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) beneficiaries and engaging in an alleged kickback scheme related to referrals for such procedures, the Department of Justice announced today.
October 23, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Nigerian Immigrant Pleads Guilty to Day Care Fraud Scheme
KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The Nigerian owner of a day care center in Kansas City, Mo., pleaded guilty in federal court today to submitting false information to the government as part of a fraud scheme to receive federal child care subsidies.
October 23, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Connecticut
Bridgeport Woman Pleads Guilty to Charges Stemming from Medicaid Fraud Scheme
John H. Durham, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that NIKKITA CHESNEY, 45, of Bridgeport, waived her right to be indicted and pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Victor A. Bolden in Bridgeport to one count of health care fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft.
October 22, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Eight New Orleans-Area Defendants Plead Guilty to Scheme to Possess Oxycodone by Fraud; Six of the Eight Also Plead Guilty to Scheme to Possess with Intent to Distribute Oxycodone on the Black Market
Eight New Orleans, Louisiana-area defendants have pleaded guilty for their participation in a conspiracy to obtain oxycodone through fraud by using fictitious prescriptions. Six of the eight defendants have also pleaded guilty for the roles in a scheme to possess with intent to distribute oxycodone on the black market.
October 22, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Kentucky
Medical Equipment Company Agrees to Pay $5.25 Million to Resolve Allegations of Fraudulent Claims for Compounded Medical Creams
LEXINGTON, Ky. - Cooley Medical Equipment, Inc., an Eastern Kentucky medical equipment supplier headquartered in Prestonsburg, Kentucky, has agreed to pay $5,254,912 to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by submitting false or fraudulent claims that misrepresented the ingredients used in certain compounded medical creams.
October 22, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Western District of Pennsylvania
Four Pittsburgh Residents Charged with Conspiracy to Commit Health Care Fraud
PITTSBURGH, Pa. - Four residents of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, were charged in federal court with conspiracy to defraud the Pennsylvania Medicaid program, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
October 19, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Northern District of Georgia
Government files False Claims Act complaint against ophthalmologist, Dr. Aarti D. Pandya
ATLANTA - The government intervened and filed a complaint in a False Claims Act lawsuit against Aarti D. Pandya, M.D. a/k/a Arati D. Pandya, M.D., an ophthalmologist from Conyers, Georgia, and her practice Aarti D. Pandya, M.D., P.C. ("the Pandya Defendants"). The lawsuit alleges that the Pandya Defendants submitted false claims to Medicare for surgical procedures, diagnostic tests, and office visits that were medically unnecessary, of worthless value, upcoded, and in some cases, not provided at all.
October 19, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Missouri
St. Louis Physician Sustains Second Conviction for Health Care
St. Louis, MO - Dr. Devon Golding, 72, of St. Louis County, was convicted by a jury today in U.S. District Court in St. Louis for participating in a conspiracy to commit health care fraud and four substantive counts of health care fraud. Dr. Golding's trial took place before Judge Audrey G. Fleissig, who ordered a presentence report and set a sentencing hearing for January 29, 2019.
October 18, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Two Michigan Home Health Agency Owners Sentenced to Prison for Health Care Fraud
Two Detroit-area home health agency owners were sentenced to 10 and six years in prison, respectively, for their roles in a multimillion dollar scheme to defraud Medicare by billing for home health services that were never provided.
October 16, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
Dallas Physicians and Nurses Sentenced to Prison for Role in $11 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme
Two Dallas doctors and three nurses were sentenced yesterday in an $11.3 million Medicare fraud scheme involving false and fraudulent claims for home health services.
October 16, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Western District of Pennsylvania
Medical Director for Bridgeville Suboxone Clinic Pleads Guilty to Unlawfully Distributing Controlled Substances
PITTSBURGH, PA - A resident of Wexford, Pa. pleaded guilty in federal court to charges of unlawfully distributing controlled substances, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
October 15, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
Health Care CEO Pleads Guilty to $150 Million Health Care Fraud Scheme Involving Harmful Injections and Unnecessary Prescription of Millions of Opioids
A health care CEO pleaded guilty today to a superseding indictment as part of an investigation into a $300 million health care fraud scheme that involved the distribution of over 6.6 million dosage units of controlled substances and the administration of medically unnecessary injections that resulted in patient harm.
October 15, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Northern District of Iowa Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
Iowa Nurse Who Took Pain Medications from Nursing Home Patients Pleads Guilty
An Iowa licensed professional nurse (LPN) who took pain medications from the residents of two nursing homes in 2016 and 2018 pled guilty today in federal court in Cedar Rapids.
October 15, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Southern District of Florida
Stuart Doctor Charged in Twenty-Six Count Federal Health Care Fraud Indictment
A doctor has been charged with committing health care fraud out of her practice in Stuart, Florida.
October 10, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Rhode Island
Previously Deported Dominican National Pleads Guilty to Identity Theft, Health Care and Welfare Fraud, Misuse of Social Security Numbers and Illegal Reentry
PROVIDENCE, RI - A previously deported Dominican national pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Providence today to charges that he reentered the country illegally, and then used the identities and Social Security numbers of others without their knowledge to fraudulently obtain health care and welfare benefits.
October 9, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
Texas Hospital Administrator Convicted of Health Care Fraud for Role in $16 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme
A federal jury convicted a Houston-area hospital administrator on Friday for his role in a $16 million Medicare fraud scheme.
October 9, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
Miami-Area Pharmacy Owner Pleads Guilty for Role in $8.4 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme
The owner of a Miami-area pharmacy pleaded guilty for his role in Medicare prescription fraud scheme involving approximately $8.4 million in fraudulent billings.
October 9, 2018; Western District of Virginia
Psychiatrist Pleads Guilty to Healthcare Fraud and Wire Fraud
Abingdon, VIRGINIA - A former psychiatrist who previously worked in Lebanon, Virginia pleaded guilty last week to healthcare fraud and wire fraud, United States Attorney Thomas T. Cullen and Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring announced.
October 5, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Texas
Grayson County Physician Guilty of Federal Drug Charges
SHERMAN, Texas - A 57-year-old Sherman, Texas doctor has pleaded guilty to federal drug distribution and fraud violations in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney Joseph D. Brown today.
October 4, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
Texas Patient Recruiter Sentenced to Nine Years in Prison for $3.6 Million Home Health Care Fraud Scheme
WASHINGTON - A Houston, Texas-area patient recruiter was sentenced to 108 months in prison today for her role in a $3.6 million Medicare fraud scheme involving fraudulent claims for home health services.
October 4, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Middle District of Florida
Fort Myers Durable Medical Equipment Providers Sentenced To Prison For Payment Of Illegal Kickbacks
Fort Myers, FL - U.S. District Court Judge John E. Steele has sentenced Ryan Williamson (50, Fort Myers) and William Pierce (50, Virginia) to one year in prison, and nine months' imprisonment, respectively, for conspiring to pay unlawful kickbacks to a local doctor for referring patients to A&G Spinal Solutions, LLC ("A&G Spinal") - the defendants' durable medical equipment company. As part of their sentences, the Court also entered money judgments against Williamson in the amount of $1,593,564.54, and against Pierce in the amount of $803,007.25, the proceeds of the conspiracy. Both men had previously pleaded guilty.
October 3, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Nevada
Nurse Practitioner And Technician Plead Guilty To Unlawful Distribution Of Prescription Opioids And Health Care Fraud
LAS VEGAS, Nev. - A nurse practitioner and a surgical technician pleaded guilty in federal court Tuesday in connection to the unlawful distribution of prescription opioids and for committing Medicare and Medicaid fraud, announced U.S. Attorney Dayle Elieson for the District of Nevada.
October 2, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Northern District of California
Santa Rosa Doctor Indicted For Unlawfully Prescribing Fentanyl And Oxycodone
SAN FRANCISCO -A federal grand jury indicted Santa Rosa doctor Thomas Keller, charging him with distributing Schedule II and IV controlled substances outside the scope of his professional practice and without a legitimate medical need, announced United States Attorney Alex G. Tse, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Special Agent in Charge Chris Nielsen, Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent in Charge John F. Bennett, and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General (HHS-OIG) Special Agent in Charge Steven J. Ryan. Keller was also charged with two counts of health care fraud related to billing.
October 1, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
AmerisourceBergen Corporation Agrees to Pay $625 Million to Resolve Allegations That it Illegally Repackaged Cancer-Supportive Injectable Drugs to Profit From Overfill
The Department of Justice announced today that AmerisourceBergen Corporation and its subsidiaries AmerisourceBergen Specialty Group (ABSG), AmerisourceBergen Drug Corporation (ABDC), Oncology Supply Company (OSC), and Medical Initiatives Inc. (MII) (collectively, "ABC") have agreed to pay $625 million to resolve allegations arising from its operation of a facility that improperly repackaged oncology-supportive injectable drugs into pre-filled syringes and improperly distributed those syringes to physicians treating vulnerable cancer patients. ABC is one of the nation's largest wholesale drug companies and ranked number 11 on the Fortune 500 list. The drugs involved in ABC's scheme were Procrit®, Aloxi®, Kytril® and its generic form granisetron, Anzemet® and Neupogen®.
October 1, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Medicare Advantage Provider to Pay $270 Million to Settle False Claims Act Liabilities
HealthCare Partners Holdings LLC, doing business as DaVita Medical Holdings LLC (DaVita), has agreed to pay $270 million to resolve its False Claims Act liability for providing inaccurate information that caused Medicare Advantage Plans to receive inflated Medicare payments, the Justice Department announced today. DaVita is headquartered in El Segundo, California.

September 2018

September 28, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Kalispell Regional Healthcare System to Pay $24 Million to Settle False Claims Act Allegations
Montana-based Kalispell Regional Healthcare System (KRH) along with six subsidiaries and related entities - Kalispell Regional Medical Center (KRMC), HealthCenter Northwest LLC (HealthCenter), Flathead Physicians Group LLC (Flathead), Northwest Horizons LLC (NH), Northwest Orthopedics & Sports Medicine LLC (NOSM), and Applied Health Services Inc. (AHS), (collectively, "KRH entities") - have agreed to pay $24 million to resolve allegations that they violated the False Claims Act by paying physicians more than fair market value, and by conspiring to enter into arrangements that improperly induced referrals, the Department of Justice announced today.
September 28, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Middle District of Florida
Government Settles $1.2 Million Lawsuit Against Florida Compounding Pharmacy And Its Owner For Excessive Charges To TRICARE
Tampa - U.S. Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez announces that the United States has settled allegations that a Tampa-based compounding pharmacy, now-defunct RS Compounding, LLC, and its owner, Renier Gobea, knowingly billed TRICARE excessive prices for compounded prescriptions. In reaching this settlement, the parties resolved allegations that, between January 1, 2012, and January 31, 2014, Gobea and RS Compounding charged TRICARE at least 2,000 percent more for drugs than they charged cash-paying customers, in violation of the False Claims Act.
September 28, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Western District of Pennsylvania
Greensburg Physician Charged with Illegally Distributing Suboxone, Health Care Fraud
PITTSBURGH - A Greensburg physician has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh on charges of distribution of buprenorphine, a Schedule III controlled substance, outside the usual course of professional practice; using and maintaining a drug-involved premises; health care fraud; and money laundering, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
September 27, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
Detroit Doctor Sentenced to more than 11 Years in Prison for $8.9 Million Health Care Fraud Scheme
A Detroit-area doctor was sentenced to 135 months in prison today for her role in a scheme involving approximately $8.9 million in fraudulent Medicare claims for home health care and other physician services that were procured through the payment of kickbacks, were not medically necessary, were not actually provided or, in some instances, were provided by the defendant, who was not a licensed physician during the relevant time period.
September 26, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Connecticut
Southeastern Connecticut Doctor Pays $99,912 to Settle Allegations under the False Claims Act
John H. Durham, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that HELAR CAMPOS, MD, a physician with a practice in New London and Norwich, has entered into a civil settlement with the government in which he will pay $99,912 to resolve allegations that he violated the False Claims Act.
September 25, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Hospital Chain Will Pay Over $260 Million to Resolve False Billing and Kickback Allegations; One Subsidiary Agrees to Plead Guilty
Health Management Associates, LLC (HMA), formerly a U.S. hospital chain headquartered in Naples, Florida, will pay over $260 million to resolve criminal charges and civil claims relating to a scheme to defraud the United States. The government alleged that HMA knowingly billed government health care programs for inpatient services that should have been billed as outpatient or observation services, paid remuneration to physicians in return for patient referrals, and submitted inflated claims for emergency department facility fees.
September 25, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Louisiana
Six Individuals Sentenced in Case Charging Health Care Fraud and Kickback Conspiracies and Obstruction
NEW ORLEANS - U.S. Attorney Peter G. Strasser announced today the sentencing of four local physicians, a biller, and office manager following a four week trial that ended on May 9, 2018.
September 25, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Virginia
VCU Health System Authority Agrees to $4 Million Settlement
RICHMOND, Va. - Virginia Commonwealth University Health System Authority (VCU), which operates VCU Medical Center and related healthcare facilities in Richmond, agreed to pay $3,994,151 to settle claims for billing overpayments paid by Medicare, Tricare, and the Federal Employees Health Benefits Plan (FEHB) for services rendered to patients.
September 25, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Pennsylvania
National Hospital Chain Will Pay Over $260 Million
PHILADELPHIA, PA - United States Attorney William M. McSwain today announced a $55 million civil settlement with Community Health Systems, Inc. (CHS) to resolve civil allegations relating to two hospitals operated by Health Management Associates (HMA), in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. The resolution of these claims in the Eastern District is part of a larger $260 million settlement between the Department of Justice and CHS which arose out of HMA's fraudulent billing practices in multiple healthcare institutions across the United States.
September 25, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Western District of North Carolina
Two Charlotte Area Hospitals Among $260 Million Global Settlement Between Hospital Chain And The United States
CHARLOTTE, N.C. - The Department of Justice announced today that Health Management Associates, LLC (HMA), formerly a major U.S. hospital chain headquartered in Naples, Florida, will pay over $260 million to resolve criminal charges and civil claims relating to a scheme to defraud the United States. This global settlement also resolves False Claims Act allegations against two Charlotte-area hospitals, Lake Norman Regional Medical Center and Davis Regional Medical Center.
September 24, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Owner of New York City Pharmacies Charged in Scheme to Defraud Medicare and Medicaid
The owner of four pharmacies in Queens, New York, will be arraigned later today in federal court in Brooklyn on an indictment charging her with submitting millions of dollars in claims as part of a scheme to defraud Medicare and Medicaid. The proceeding will take place before U.S. Magistrate Judge Steven L. Tiscione at 11:00 a.m.
September 24, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of New York
Board Certified Ophthalmologist Agrees to Civil Fraud Settlement in Medicare Fraud Investigation
The United States has entered into an agreement to settle civil fraud claims with Dr. Mark Fleckner, a Board Certified Ophthalmologist who maintains a practice in Garden City, New York. The agreement resolves allegations that, in contravention of Medicare regulations and in violation of the federal False Claims Act, Dr. Fleckner administered certain pharmaceutical products that he had purchased overseas, which the U.S. Food and Drug Administration ("FDA") had not evaluated nor approved for use in the United States ("Unapproved Drugs"). These products included aflibercept ("Eylea") and ranibizumab ("Lucentis"), which Dr. Fleckner used to treat patients who had wet, age-related macular degeneration or other diseases and conditions of the eye. The United States contends that the Unapproved Drugs were not eligible for reimbursement by Medicare. Under the terms of the civil settlement agreement, Dr. Fleckner will pay a total of $6,955,240.80.
September 21, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Massachusetts
Physician Convicted of False Billing Scheme
BOSTON - A physician and former employee of New England Pain Management Associates, Inc. was convicted today by a federal jury of conspiring to falsify patient medical records between May 2012 and May 2013 in an effort to obtain payments from Medicare and commercial insurers for medical services that were not performed.
September 20, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of New York
Most Wanted Fugitive Arraigned on Multi-Million Dollar Health Care Fraud
Etienne Allonce is scheduled to be arraigned today before United States District Judge Joseph F. Bianco at the federal courthouse in Central Islip on charges of health care fraud and conspiracy, for allegedly defrauding Medicare and Medicaid out of millions of dollars. Allonce was expelled from Haiti to face the charges in the indictment pending here, and turned over to the custody of law enforcement agents. Prior to his return to the United States, Allonce was placed on the Most Wanted list of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG).
September 19, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
Physician and Two Clinic Operators Found Guilty for Their Roles in $17 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme
A federal jury found a physician and two clinic owners and operators guilty yesterday for their roles in a $17 million Medicare fraud scheme.
September 19, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Kentucky
Federal Court Orders $1.3 Million Judgment Against Toxicology Laboratory for Committing Healthcare Fraud
FRANKFORT, Ky. - The U.S. District Court has entered a civil judgment of $1,374,058, in favor of the United States and against Calloway Laboratories, Inc. ("Calloway"), a clinical laboratory based in Woburn, Massachusetts, holding Calloway liable for submitting false claims to federal healthcare programs, including Medicare and TRICARE.
September 19, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Massachusetts
Springfield Doctor Sentenced for Illegally Sharing Patient Medical Files
BOSTON - A Springfield gynecologist was sentenced today in connection with allowing a pharmaceutical sales representative to access patient records and lying to federal investigators.
September 18, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Middle District of Florida
Clearwater Doctor Pleads Guilty To Health Care Fraud
Tampa, Florida - Dr. Jayam Krishna Iyer (66, Clearwater) today pleaded guilty to one count of health care fraud. She faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison, or 20 years, if her offense involves serious bodily injury. As part of the plea, Iyer has agreed to surrender both her DEA registration number that she used to prescribe controlled substances and her Florida medical license, and to a permanent exclusion from the Medicare and Medicaid programs.
September 18, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Western District of Pennsylvania
Suboxone Clinic Owner Pleads Guilty to Unlawfully Dispensing Prescription Drugs and Health Care Fraud
PITTSBURGH, PA. - The former owner of a Bridgeville, PA Suboxone clinic pleaded guilty in federal court to charges of unlawfully distributing controlled substances and health care fraud, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
September 17, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of New Hampshire
Windham Nurse Practitioner Pleads Guilty to Healthcare Fraud and Prescription Fraud Charges
CONCORD - Kristen Khanna, 42, of Windham, pleaded guilty in federal court today to healthcare fraud and prescription fraud charges, United States Attorney Scott W. Murray announced.
September 17, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Northern District of West Virginia
Ohio physician sentenced to nearly five years for fraudulently distributing controlled substances
WHEELING, WEST VIRGINIA - Dr. Tod Hagins, of Wintersville, Ohio, was sentenced today to 57 months incarceration for writing fraudulent prescriptions to be sold on the streets from his Weirton, West Virginia practice, United States Attorney Bill Powell announced.
September 14, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Middle District of Florida
Port Charlotte Doctor Sentenced To Five Months In Prison For Obstruction Of An Audit
Tampa, Florida - U.S. District Judge Steven Merrday has sentenced Dr. John Janick (73, Port Charlotte) to five months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for obstructing a Medicare audit. As part of his sentence, Janick is required to pay $118,831.62 in restitution to the Medicare program.
September 12, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Maryland
CEO of Lab Testing Company and Marketing Representative Sentenced to Federal Prison in Pain Management Clinic Kickback Scheme
Baltimore, Maryland - Chief U.S. District Judge James K. Bredar sentenced Konstantin Bas, age 41, of Brooklyn, New York, and co-conspirator Mubtagha Shah Syed, age 49, of Jersey City, New Jersey, today to a year and a day, and three months in prison, respectively, each followed by three years of supervised release, for a scheme in which a Maryland pain management practice referred urine specimens to Bas's testing lab in return for $1.37 million in kickbacks. Chief Judge Bredar also ordered Bas to forfeit $241,600 and to pay a fine of $5,000. Chief Judge Bredar ordered that Syed serve the first three months of his supervised release in home detention with electronic monitoring, and ordered that Syed forfeit $23,400 and pay a fine of $4,000.
September 11, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Detroit-Area Podiatrist Sentenced to Prison for Health Care Fraud
A Detroit-area podiatrist was sentenced to 28 months in prison today for his participation in a $1 million scheme involving podiatry services that were billed to Medicare but were never rendered.
September 11, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Maryland
Pain Management Physician Sentenced to 8 Years in Federal Prison for Central Role in Million Dollar Kickback Scheme and Fraudulent Billing Scheme
Baltimore, Maryland - Chief U.S. District Judge James K. Bredar sentenced Atif Babar Malik, age 48, of Germantown, Maryland, today to eight years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. The sentence was imposed for his trial conviction on 26 counts arising from two criminal schemes involving $1.376 million in kickbacks and fraudulently billing, as well as his guilty plea to a conspiracy to defraud the United States of more than $2.1 million in taxes. Chief Judge Bredar also ordered Malik to pay a fine of $75,000; to pay restitution of $175,000; and to forfeit $241,976.
September 11, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Southern District of Ohio
Columbus Pharmacist Sentenced for Health Care Fraud Scheme
COLUMBUS, Ohio - Maria Mascio, 62, of Columbus, Ohio, was sentenced in U.S. District Court today to 24 months in prison and ordered to pay $1.1 million in restitution for executing a decade-long health care fraud scheme.
September 10, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Arizona
Youth Care Worker Convicted of Sexually Abusing Unaccompanied Minors in Southwest Key Facility
PHOENIX - On Sept. 7, 2018, a federal jury convicted Levian D. Pacheco, 25, of Phoenix, Ariz., of seven counts of abusive sexual contact with a ward and three counts of sexual abuse of a ward. U.S. District Judge Steven P. Logan presided over the seven-day trial. Sentencing is scheduled for Dec. 3, 2018.
September 7, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
South Florida Pharmacist Convicted of Health Care Fraud for Role in $5 Million Compounding Pharmacy Scheme
A federal jury found a South Florida pharmacist guilty today of health care fraud for his role in a $5 million compounding pharmacy scheme.
September 7, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
South Florida Doctor Sentenced to 78 Months in Prison for Participating in a Conspiracy to Illegally Dispense Opioids and Other Drugs
Dr. Andres Mencia, 64, of Fort Lauderdale, Florida was sentenced today to 78 months in prison, after having been convicted by a federal jury in South Florida, of participating in a conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance.
September 5, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Two Individuals Associated With a Mental Health Company Plead Guilty to Health Care Fraud and Tax Evasion
Two individuals associated with a mental health company pleaded guilty to health care fraud related to the submission of false claims to Medicaid and tax evasion, announced Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Zuckerman and U.S. Attorney Matthew G.T. Martin for the Middle District of North Carolina.
September 4, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Houston Psychiatrist Sentenced to More Than 12 Years in Prison for Role in $155 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme
A Houston psychiatrist was sentenced today to 150 months in prison for his role in a $155 million Medicare fraud scheme involving false and fraudulent claims for psychiatric services.

August 2018

August 31, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Western District of Michigan
Former Home Health Nurse Pleads Guilty To Tampering With Patients' Drugs
GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN - Kristie Ann Mollohan, 42, formerly of Kalamazoo, Michigan, pled guilty before the Hon. Phillip J. Green, U.S. Magistrate Judge, to two counts of tampering with a consumer product. This federal offense prohibits tampering with a drug or other consumer product with reckless disregard for the risk of death or bodily injury and under circumstances manifesting extreme indifference to the risk of injury or death. Mollohan faces a maximum sentence of 10 years of imprisonment on each count, and she will be required to serve a term of supervised release after any prison term has been completed. U.S. District Judge Gordon J. Quist will sentence Mollohan on a date to be scheduled by the Court.
August 31, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Western District of Pennsylvania
Suboxone Clinic Doctor Pleads Guilty to Unlawfully Dispensing Controlled Substances, Health Care Fraud
PITTSBURGH, PA - A prescribing physician with SKS Associates, an opioid treatment facility located in Johnstown, PA, guilty in federal court to charges of dispense and distribution of controlled substances, conspiracy to distribute controlled substances and health care fraud, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
August 30, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Southern District of New York
Four Individuals Charged In Widespread Scheme To Defraud Medicare And Other Health Insurance Providers Through Fraudulent Medical Corporations And False Billing Resulting In Tens Of Millions Of Dollars In Losses
Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, William F. Sweeney, Jr., the Assistant Director-in-Charge of the New York Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation ("FBI"), Scott J. Lampert, Special Agent in Charge of the New York Office of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General ("HHS-OIG"), and Thomas P. DiNapoli, the New York State Comptroller, announced the unsealing today of an indictment charging JAMES SPINA, JEFFREY SPINA, ANDREA GROSSMAN, and KIMBERLY SPINA with participating in a widespread health care fraud scheme through their fraudulent operation of Dolson Avenue Medical ("DAM" or the "Practice"), a multi-disciplinary medical clinic located in Middletown, New York. The defendants were all arrested today, and presented in federal district court in White Plains. This case has been assigned to U.S. District Court Judge Kenneth M. Karas.
August 29, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Columbia
Maryland Man Pleads Guilty to Health Care Fraud in Scheme Targeting D.C. Medicaid Program
WASHINGTON - A Maryland man who was employed as a personal care aide pled guilty today to a federal charge of health care fraud stemming from a scheme
August 29, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Southern District of Ohio
Doctor Sentenced for Running Pill Mill
DAYTON - David Kirkwood, 62, of Dayton, was sentenced in U.S. District Court today to 70 months in prison and five years of supervised release for running a pill mill in Dayton.
August 30, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Western District of Pennsylvania
Suboxone Clinic Doctor Pleads Guilty to Unlawfully Distributing Controlled Substances and Health Care Fraud
PITTSBURGH, PA. - A resident of Sewickley, PA, pleaded guilty in federal court to charges of unlawfully distributing controlled substances, conspiracy to distribute controlled substances and health care fraud, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
August 28, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
Co-Owners of Miami Pain Management Clinic Plead Guilty to Conspiracy to Distribute Medically Unnecessary Opioid Prescriptions
The husband and wife co-owners of a Miami pain management clinic and a patient recruiter pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances for their participation in a scheme to unlawfully distribute thousands of pills of oxycodone.
August 28, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Northern District of California
Saratoga Doctor Sentenced To More Than Five Years In Prison For Health Care Fraud And Providing False Billing Statements To Health Care Benefit Programs
SAN JOSE- Vilasini Ganesh was sentenced today to 63 months in prison for health care fraud and making false statements related to a health care benefits program, announced United States Attorney Alex G. Tse and Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent in Charge John F. Bennett. The sentence was handed down by the Honorable Lucy H. Koh, U.S. District Judge.
August 27, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Ambulance Company and its Municipal Clients Agree to Pay Over $21 Million to Settle Allegations of Unlawful Kickbacks and Improper Financial Relationships
Seven ambulance industry defendants have agreed to pay the government a total of over $21 million to settle a False Claims Act lawsuit alleging that they knowingly submitted claims to the Medicare and Medicaid programs that violated the Anti Kickback Statute, the Justice Department announced today.
August 24, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Middle District of Alabama
Montgomery "Pill Mill" Doctor Receives a 145- Month Sentence for Drug Distribution, Health Care Fraud, and Money Laundering Offenses; "Pill Mill" Mental Health Counselor Pleads Guilty in Related Case
Montgomery, Alabama - On Thursday, August 23, 2018, Dr. Gilberto Sanchez, 56, of Montgomery, Alabama, was sentenced to serve 12 years and 1 month in prison for prescribing unnecessary controlled substances to his patients, committing health care fraud, and laundering money, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr.
August 23, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
California Doctor Convicted of Medicare Kickback Conspiracy
A federal jury in Los Angeles, California found a Lancaster, California doctor guilty today of conspiracy for his role in a Medicare kickback conspiracy involving a Los Angeles-area home health agency.
August 23, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Reliant to Pay $6.1 Million to Settle False Claims Act Allegations That it Paid Kickbacks to Nursing Homes for Rehabilitation Therapy Business
Reliant Rehabilitation Holdings Inc. (Reliant), a national provider of rehabilitation therapy and related services headquartered in Plano, Texas, has agreed to pay the United States $6.1 million to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act (FCA), 31 U.S.C. �3729, et seq., by paying kickbacks to skilled nursing facilities and physicians in connection with care provided to Medicare beneficiaries as a way of improperly promoting Reliant's rehabilitation therapy business, the Justice Department announced today.
August 23, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Northern District of Georgia
Eye care provider sentenced to federal prison for Medicare and Medicaid fraud
GAINESVILLE, Ga. - Matilda Lynn Prince has been sentenced to federal prison, after a jury convicted her of twenty-nine counts of healthcare fraud for filing fraudulent claims with Medicare and the Georgia Medicaid program for optometry and ophthalmology services that were never provided to patients.
August 22, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Missouri
Warren County Doctor Pleads Guilty to Illegally Distributing Opiods and Medicare Fraud
St. Louis, MO - Dr. Philip Dean, 62, a resident of Warren County, Missouri, pled guilty today to two felony charges, illegally distributing opiate medications and making a false statement to the Medicare program.
August 22, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Southern District of West Virginia
Kentucky Pharmacy Owner Pleads Guilty to Misbranding Conspiracy
CHARLESTON, W.Va. - United States Attorney Mike Stuart announced that Karl O'Dell, 61, a pharmacist and owner of a pharmacy in Ashland, Kentucky, pled guilty yesterday to a conspiracy to misbrand oxycodone and hydrocodone. Stuart praised the investigation conducted by the Food and Drug Administration, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services - Office of Inspector General, Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigations, the Kentucky State Police, the Kentucky Board of Pharmacy, the West Virginia State Police, and the Drug Enforcement Administration.
August 21, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Southern District of New York
Doctor Sentenced For Participating In $30 Million Scheme To Defraud Medicare And Medicaid
Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that physician EWALD J. ANTOINE was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Lorna G. Schofield to one year and one day in prison for his participation in a $30 million scheme to defraud Medicare and the New York State Medicaid Program. ANTOINE falsely posed as the owner of two medical clinics, which were actually owned by a corrupt businessman, and falsely claimed that he had examined and treated hundreds of patients whom he had not in fact seen. ANTOINE pled guilty on January 11, 2018, to health care fraud and conspiracy to commit health care fraud, mail fraud, and wire fraud.
August 21, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Southern District of West Virginia
HOPE Clinic Nurse Practitioner Pleads Guilty
CHARLESTON, W.Va. - United States Attorney Mike Stuart announced that Teresa Emerson, 59, of Bristol, Virginia, pled guilty today to aiding and abetting obtaining a controlled substance by fraud. Stuart praised the investigation conducted by the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (OIG), the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigations, the Food and Drug Administration, the West Virginia State Police, the Kentucky State Police, the Beckley Police Department, the Virginia State Police, the Charleston Police Department, and the Drug Enforcement Administration.
August 20, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Western District of Missouri
Nurse pleads guilty to health care fraud related to deceased Fulton man
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. - A nurse who falsely claimed to provide health care services to Carl DeBrodie, a Medicaid beneficiary in Fulton, Mo., who was found deceased and his body encased in concrete, pleaded guilty in federal court today to health care fraud.
August 20, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Southern District of Texas
Ambulance Company Owner Convicted in $3 Million Medicare Fraud Conspiracy
HOUSTON - A 59-year-old Sugar Land man has admitted to conspiring to commit health care fraud through Medicare ambulance claims, announced U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Patrick.
August 16, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Southern District of Illinois
Durable Medical Equipment Provider Lincare Pays $5.25 Million to Resolve False Claims Act Allegations
Lincare, Inc., has paid $5.25 million to resolve allegations that it violated the federal False Claims Act and the Anti-Kickback Statute by offering illegal price reductions to Medicare beneficiaries, U.S. Attorney Steven D. Weinhoeft announced today. Headquartered in Clearwater, Florida, Lincare is one of the nation's largest providers of oxygen and other respiratory therapy services to patients in the home, with approximately 1,000 locations across the United States.
August 16, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Michigan
Genesee County Physician and Two Others Charged with Health Care Fraud
A grand jury indictment was unsealed today charging Patrick Wittbrodt, Dr. April Tyler and Jeffrey Fillmore of Genesee County with health care fraud and Patrick Wittbrodt with money laundering, United States Attorney Matthew Schneider announced.
August 15, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Post Acute Medical Agrees to Pay More Than $13 Million to Settle Allegations of Kickbacks and Improper Physician Relationships
Post Acute Medical, LLC, a Pennsylvania-based operator of long term care and rehabilitation hospitals across the country, and certain affiliated entities through which the company operates its facilities (collectively, "PAM"), have agreed to pay the United States, Texas, and Louisiana a total of $13,168,000 to resolve claims that they violated the False Claims Act, and the Texas and Louisiana false claims statutes, by knowingly submitting claims to the Medicare and Medicaid programs that resulted from violations of the Anti Kickback Statute and the Physician Self Referral Law, the Justice Department announced today.
August 14, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Southern District of Illinois
Red Bud Pharmacy Owner and Pharmacist Pleads Guilty to Healthcare Fraud
Steven P. Gibson, 29, pharmacist and owner of Gibson's Discount Drugs in Red Bud, Illinois, pled guilty in federal court today to charges that he engaged in a scheme to defraud health care benefit programs by submitting false claims for fraudulent prescription medications to Medicare, Medicaid, and private insurance companies that were not authorized by a physician, nurse practitioner, or a physician's assistant as required. Sentencing is set for November 27, 2018. Gibson will face up to 10 years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, and up to three years of supervised release on each of the two counts to which he pled guilty.
August 13, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of California
Merced Former CEO and Licensed Nurse Practitioner Pleads Guilty to Health Care Fraud
FRESNO, Calif. - Sandra Haar, 57, of Merced, pleaded guilty today to health care fraud and conspiracy to receive kickbacks, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.
August 10, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Northern District of Oklahoma
Grand Jury Indicts Physician for Illegal Remuneration for Health Care Referrals
United States Attorney Trent Shores announced today that a federal grand jury returned an indictment against Adam Gallardo Arrendondo, 56, of Waxahachie, Texas, charging him with Illegal Remuneration for Health Care Referrals.
August 10, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Department of Justice
Eldorado Woman Pleads Guilty to Healthcare Fraud Charge
On August 9, 2018, Betsy J. Gutowski, 45, of Eldorado, Illinois, pled guilty in federal court to charges that she engaged in a scheme to steal from a federal health care program, Steven D. Weinhoeft, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, announced today. Prior to her guilty plea, Gutowski's bond was revoked, and she remains in custody pending sentencing, which is currently set for November 15, 2018. Gutowski faces a maximum possible sentence of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
August 8, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Northern District of Oklahoma
Grand Jury Indicts Physician for Illegal Remuneration for Health Care Referrals
United States Attorney Trent Shores announced today that a federal grand jury returned an indictment against Adam Gallardo Arrendondo, 56, of Waxahachie, Texas, charging him with Illegal Remuneration for Health Care Referrals.
August 8, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Tennessee
Physician and Wife Pay $428,000 to Settle False Claims Act Allegations for Billing Government Programs for Unapproved Drugs
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. - U.S. Attorney J. Douglas Overbey announced today that Dr. Donald Chamberlain and Karen Chamberlain have paid $428,700, to resolve state and federal False Claims Act allegations. It is alleged that from January 7, 2009 through May 2, 2012, their medical practice billed Medicare, Tennessee Medicaid (TennCare), and the Federal Employees Health Benefit Program (FEHBP) for foreign-sourced anticancer drugs not approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for marketing in the United States. Dr. Chamberlain owned and operated Chattanooga Gyn-Oncology, P.C., located in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Mrs. Chamberlain managed Dr. Chamberlain's medical practice since the time of its inception.
August 8, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Connecticut
Drug Company Manager Admits Role in Kickback Scheme Related to Fentanyl Spray Prescriptions
John H. Durham, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that JEFFREY PEARLMAN, 51, of Edgewood, N.J., pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Janet Bond Arterton in New Haven to engaging in a kickback scheme that defrauded federal healthcare programs.
August 8, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Massachusetts
Lowell Physicians Settle Drug Diversion Allegations
BOSTON - Two Lowell-based physicians have agreed to settle with the U.S. Attorney's Office to resolve allegations of improper dispensing of controlled substances and improper billing.
August 6, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Grenada Lake Medical Center to Pay More Than $1.1 Million to Resolve False Claims Act Allegations Involving Medically Unnecessary Psychotherapy Services
The Justice Department announced today that Grenada Lakes Medical Center (GLMC), a publicly-owned hospital which at various times has been operated by the University of Mississippi Medical Center and by the Grenada Lake Medical Center Board of Trustees, has agreed to pay more than $1.1 million to resolve False Claims Act allegations that the hospital sought and received reimbursement from Medicare for services that were not medically reasonable or necessary.
August 3, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Prime Healthcare Services and CEO to Pay $65 Million to Settle False Claims Act Allegations
Prime Healthcare Services, Inc., Prime Healthcare Foundation, Inc., and Prime Healthcare Management, Inc. (collectively Prime), and Prime's Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Prem Reddy, have agreed to pay the United States $65 million to settle allegations that 14 Prime hospitals in California knowingly submitted false claims to Medicare by admitting patients who required only less costly, outpatient care and by billing for more expensive patient diagnoses than the patients had (a practice known as "up-coding"), the Justice Department announced today. Under the settlement agreement, Dr. Reddy will pay $3,250,000 and Prime will pay $61,750,000.
August 3, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Northern District of Georgia
Northwest ENT Associates, P.C. to pay approximately $1.2 million to resolve False Claims Act allegations
ATLANTA -Northwest ENT Associates, P.C. ("Northwest ENT"), a Marietta, Georgia based professional corporation, has agreed to pay $1,195,361 to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by submitting claims for sinus dilation procedures in which it re-used balloon catheters that were intended for single use only.
August 3, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Central District of California
Prime Healthcare Services and its CEO Agree to Pay $65 Million to Settle Medicare Overbilling Allegations at 14 California Hospitals
LOS ANGELES - Prime Healthcare Services, Inc.; Prime Healthcare Foundation, Inc.; Prime Healthcare Management, Inc.; and Prime's Founder and chief executive officer, Dr. Prem Reddy, have agreed to pay the United States $65 million to settle allegations that 14 Prime hospitals in California knowingly submitted false claims to Medicare by admitting patients who required only less costly, outpatient care and by billing for more expensive patient diagnoses than the patients had (a practice known as "up-coding").
August 2, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Detroit Area Hospital System to Pay $84.5 Million to Settle False Claims Act Allegations Arising From Improper Payments to Referring Physicians
WASHINGTON - William Beaumont Hospital, a regional hospital system based in the Detroit, Michigan area, will pay $84.5 million to resolve allegations under the False Claims Act of improper relationships with eight referring physicians, resulting in the submission of false claims to the Medicare, Medicaid and TRICARE programs, the Justice Department announced today.
August 2, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of South Carolina
Early Autism Project, Inc., South Carolina's Largest Provider of Behavioral Therapy for Children with Autism, Pays the United States $8.8 Million to Settle Allegations of Fraud
COLUMBIA, SC - The United States Attorney's Office for the District of South Carolina announced today that Early Autism Project, Inc. ("EAP") has paid the United States $8,833,615 to resolve a False Claims Act investigation that it submitted false claims to the TRICARE and the South Carolina Medicaid programs for therapy services for children with autism. EAP is South Carolina's largest provider of intensive behavioral treatment to children with autism, known as Applied Behavioral Analysis ("ABA") therapy. TRICARE is the federal health insurance program for active and retired military members and their families, while South Carolina Medicaid provides health benefits to qualifying low-income residents of South Carolina.
August 1, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Southern District of New York
Doctor Sentenced To 18 Months In Prison For Participating In $30 Million Scheme To Defraud Medicare And Medicaid
Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that physician MUSTAK Y. VAID was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Lorna G. Schofield to 18 months in prison for his participation in a $30 million scheme to defraud Medicare and the New York State Medicaid Program. VAID falsely posed as the owner of a medical clinic, when that clinic was in fact owned by a corrupt businessman, and falsely claimed that he had examined and treated hundreds of patients whom he had not in fact seen. VAID pled guilty on November 13, 2017, to health care fraud and conspiracy to commit health care fraud, mail fraud, and wire fraud before U.S. Magistrate Judge Henry B. Pitman.
August 1, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of South Carolina
Mount Pleasant Speech Therapist Convicted of Health Care Fraud and Aggravated Identity Theft
Charleston, South Carolina---- Following a four-day trial before U.S. District Judge Richard Gergel, a federal jury convicted Gena Randolph, 44, of Mount Pleasant, of committing a $2 million health care fraud scheme, announced United States Attorney Sherri A. Lydon.

July 2018

July 31, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of North Carolina
Federal Court Awards Nearly $3 Million in Damages and Penalties for Medicaid Fraud Scheme
RALEIGH - The United States Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina, Robert J. Higdon, Jr., announced today that a federal court awarded a nearly $3 million judgment against Compassionate Home Care Services, Inc., Carol Anders, and Ryan Santiago for their participation in a fraud on the North Carolina Medicaid program in violation of the federal and North Carolina False Claims Acts.
July 31, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of New Jersey
Cardiologist Gets 20 Months In Prison For Billing Veterans Affairs For Hundreds Of Bogus Medical Procedures
NEWARK, N.J. - A Somerset, New Jersey, man was sentenced today to 20 months in prison for defrauding the Veterans Affairs program by billing for services he never performed, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.
July 30, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Former Owner of Sleep Study Businesses Convicted of Fraud Conspiracy
A federal jury convicted a Sterling, Virginia woman today on health care fraud and tax charges for operating a fraudulent sleep study clinic in Northern Virginia.
July 25, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Owner of Durable Medical Equipment Company Pleads Guilty to Defrauding Medicaid of More Than $9 Million
The owner of a company that provided durable medical equipment pleaded guilty today to a federal charge of health care fraud for carrying out a scheme in which she fraudulently obtained more than $9.4 million in District of Columbia Medicaid payments.
July 25, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Columbia
Owner of Durable Medical Equipment Company Pleads Guilty To Defrauding Medicaid of More Than $9 Million
WASHINGTON - The owner of a company that provided durable medical equipment pleaded guilty today to a federal charge of health care fraud for carrying out a scheme in which she fraudulently obtained more than $9.4 million in District of Columbia Medicaid payments.
July 25, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Nevada
Las Vegas Doctor Pleads Guilty To Conspiracy To Distribute Prescription Medications Hydrocodone And Oxycodone Without Medical Purpose
LAS VEGAS, Nev. - A Las Vegas doctor pleaded guilty today for his role in a conspiracy to distribute prescription medications, specifically Hydrocodone and Oxycodone, by allowing his co-conspirators to write illegal opioid prescriptions using his prescription pad.
July 24, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Puerto Rico
Doctor Indicted And Arrested For Health Care Fraud
SAN JUAN, P.R. - On July 19, 2018, a Federal Grand Jury in the District of Puerto Rico returned an indictment charging Dr. Miguel Rivera-Sanabria with 18 counts of health care fraud, three counts of aggravated identity theft, three counts of false statement relating to health care matters, and eight counts for attempted distribution of controlled substances. The defendant was arrested today, announced Rosa Emilia Rodr�guez V�lez, United States Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico. The Office of the Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services ("HHS-OIG") is in charge of the investigation with the collaboration of the FBI and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).
July 23, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Western District of Pennsylvania
California Doctor and his Assistant Charged in Scheme to Distribute Prescription Drugs and Commit Health Care Fraud
PITTSBURGH - Two California residents have been indicted by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on charges of conspiracy to distribute fentanyl, methadone, and oxycodone; distribution of oxycodone; conspiracy to commit health care fraud, and conspiracy to launder money, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
July 20, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Middle District of Florida
Port Charlotte Woman Pleads Guilty To Health Care Fraud
Tampa, Florida - United States Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez announces that Lisa McLaren Janick (47, Port Charlotte) today pleaded guilty to two counts of health care fraud. McLaren Janick faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison on each count. A sentencing date has not yet been set.
July 18, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Medical Device Maker AngioDynamics Agrees to Pay $12.5 Million to Resolve False Claims Act Allegations
WASHINGTON - Latham, New York-based medical device manufacturer AngioDynamics, Inc. has agreed to pay the United States a total of $12.5 million to resolve allegations that the company caused healthcare providers to submit false claims to Medicare, Medicaid, and other federal healthcare programs relating to the use of two medical devices, LC Bead and the Perforator Vein Ablation Kit (PVAK), the Justice Department announced today.
July 18, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of New York
Medical Doctor Convicted in Brooklyn Federal Court of Causing Overdose Death of a Patient
A federal jury in Brooklyn today, following two weeks of trial, convicted Dr. Martin Tesher of 10 counts of unlawful distribution of oxycodone without legitimate medical purpose to five patients, one of whom died as a result two days after his last visit with the defendant. When sentenced by United States District Judge Raymond J. Dearie, Dr. Tesher faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years' imprisonment and a maximum of life in prison.
July 17, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Maine
County Ambulance, Inc. Agrees to Pay $16,776.74 to Settle Civil Health Care Fraud Case
Portland, Maine: United States Attorney Halsey B. Frank today announced that County Ambulance, Inc. ("County Ambulance"), of Ellsworth, has entered into a civil settlement agreement with the United States and the State of Maine in which it will pay $16,776.74 to resolve allegations that it submitted false claims to Medicare and MaineCare (Maine's Medicaid program) from January 2015 through April 2016. MaineCare is primarily funded by the United States, which pays about two-thirds of all claims submitted to MaineCare.
July 16, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Southern District of Florida
Palm Beach, Florida Home Health Care Company and Its Owner Agree to Resolve False Claims Act Allegations for $1.5 Million
Healthquest, Inc. and its owners, Frank Jaramillo and Ruth Jaramillo, have agreed to pay $1.5 million to the United States to settle allegations that Healthquest paid kickbacks to marketers in order to induce patient referrals, the United States Attorney's Office announced today. Healthquest is a home health care company located in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. The defendants also entered into a five-year Integrity Agreement with the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General that includes, among other things, an Arrangements Review including a systems review and a transaction review to be conducted by an Independent Review Organization.
July 13, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Missouri
St. Louis County Doctor Pleads Guilty to Obstructing FBI Investigation
St. Louis, MO - Dr. Vidal Sheen, 58, St. Louis County, Missouri, pled guilty to obstructing an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation ("FBI") regarding whether he billed the Medicare program and private insurers for "face to face" office visits performed on dates when he was actually traveling outside of Missouri, and sometimes traveling outside of the United States.
July 10, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Middle District of Florida
United States Settles False Claims Act Allegations Against Liberty Ambulance For $1.2 Million
Jacksonville, FL - Today, after a multiple-year investigation and the government's intervention into a whistleblower suit in 2015, the United States announces a $1.2 million settlement with Liberty Ambulance. In reaching this settlement, the parties have resolved allegations that, from June 29, 2005, to January 2016, Liberty Ambulance knowingly up-coded claims for life support services from "Basic" to "Advanced" without justification, unnecessarily transported patients, and unnecessarily transported patients to their homes in an emergent fashion.
July 10, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Pennsylvania
Owner of Philadelphia Pain Management Clinic Pleads Guilty to Illegal Distribution of Oxycodone and Xanax
PHILADELPHIA - U.S. Attorney William M. McSwain announced that Arthur Miriana, the owner of a Philadelphia pain management clinic, pled guilty today to conspiracy to distribute and distribution of oxycodone and alprazolam, commonly known as Xanax.
July 9, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Health Quest and Putnam Hospital Center to Pay $14.7 Million to Resolve False Claims Act Allegations
Health Quest Systems, Inc. and certain of its subsidiaries (Health Quest) and Putnam Health Center (PHC) have agreed to pay over $14.7 million to resolve allegations of violations of the False Claims Act by submitting inflated and otherwise ineligible claims for payment, the Justice Department announced today. New-York based Health Quest is a family of integrated hospitals and healthcare providers that deliver surgical, medical and home health care services. PHC is a Health Quest subsidiary hospital based in Carmel Hamlet, New York.
July 3, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Connecticut
Waterford Psychologist Pays $126,760 to Settle Allegations under the False Claims Act
United States Attorney John H. Durham and Connecticut Attorney General George Jepsen today announced that ARLENE WERNER, PhD., has entered into a civil settlement agreement with the federal and state governments and has paid more than $126,000 to resolve allegations that she violated the federal and state False Claims Acts.
July 3, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Western District of Pennsylvania
Family Practice Doctor Pays $360,000 to Settle False Claims Act Allegations
PITTSBURGH - Brent E. Clark, M.D., a former family practice doctor in Pittsburgh, agreed to pay $360,000 to the United States to settle claims that he violated the False Claims Act by submitting or causing to be submitted false claims to Medicare and Medicaid for medically unnecessary and unreasonable services, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.

June 2018

June 29, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
South Florida Doctor Convicted Of Participating in a Conspiracy to Illegally Dispense Opioids and Other Drugs
Dr. Andres Mencia, 64, of Fort Lauderdale, Florida was convicted today by a federal jury in Fort Lauderdale, of participating in a conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance.
June 29, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Kentucky
Skilled Nursing Facility, Management Company, And Owner Agree To Pay $540,000 To Resolve Allegations Of Providing Worthless Services And Upcoding
LEXINGTON, Ky. - Preferred Care Inc. (Preferred Care); its Stanton, Kentucky skilled nursing facility, Stanton Nursing and Rehabilitation Center (Stanton Nursing); owner, Thomas D. Scott; Preferred Care Partners Management Group (PCPMG); and certain other affiliated entities have agreed to pay $540,000 to the United States and the Commonwealth of Kentucky, to resolve allegations that Stanton Nursing billed Medicare and the Kentucky Medicaid program for fraudulently inflated skilled nursing services and providing materially substandard care, in violation of the False Claims Act.
June 29, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Southern District of Indiana
Former health care chief executive sentenced to 9.5 years in federal prison
INDIANAPOLIS B United States Attorney Josh J. Minkler today announced the sentencing of the former CEO of American Senior Communities (ASC) in a massive fraud, kickback, and money laundering conspiracy. James Burkhart, 53, of Carmel, was sentenced to 114 months imprisonment by U.S. District Court Judge Tanya Walton Pratt.
June 28, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
National Health Care Fraud Takedown Results in Charges Against 601 Individuals Responsible for Over $2 Billion in Fraud Losses
Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Alex M. Azar III, announced today the largest ever health care fraud enforcement action involving 601 charged defendants across 58 federal districts, including 165 doctors, nurses and other licensed medical professionals, for their alleged participation in health care fraud schemes involving more than $2 billion in false billings. Of those charged, 162 defendants, including 76 doctors, were charged for their roles in prescribing and distributing opioids and other dangerous narcotics. Thirty state Medicaid Fraud Control Units also participated in today's arrests. In addition, HHS announced today that from July 2017 to the present, it has excluded 2,700 individuals from participation in Medicare, Medicaid, and all other Federal health care programs, which includes 587 providers excluded for conduct related to opioid diversion and abuse.
June 27, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Western District of Missouri
Additional Charges Against KC Daycare Owner Previously Indicted for $556,000 Fraud Scheme
KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Additional charges were brought today against the owner of a Kansas City, Mo., day care center who, along with the center's director, was previously indicted by a federal grand jury for a conspiracy to fraudulently receive as much as $556,000 in federal benefits.
June 27, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Michigan
Monroe Area Doctor Charged with Illegal Distribution of Prescription Drugs and Health Care Fraud
A grand jury returned an indictment yesterday charging Dr. Lesly Pompy, 57, of Monroe, Michigan with unlawful distribution of prescription drugs and health care fraud, United States Attorney Matthew Schneider announced today.
June 25, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Caris Agrees to Pay $8.5 Million to Settle False Claims Act Lawsuit Alleging That it Billed for Ineligible Hospice Patients
WASHINGTON - Caris Healthcare, L.P. and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Caris Healthcare, LLC ("Caris Healthcare"), have agreed to resolve allegations that they violated the False Claims Act by knowingly submitting false claims, and knowingly retaining overpayments, for the care of patients who were ineligible for the Medicare hospice benefit because they were not terminally ill, the Department of Justice announced today. Under the settlement agreement, Caris Healthcare, a for-profit hospice chain that operates in Tennessee, Virginia, and South Carolina, has agreed to pay $8.5 million.
June 22, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Texas Physician and Two Texas Nurses Convicted for Roles in Home Health Care Fraud Scheme
A federal jury found one physician and two nurses guilty today of health care fraud, and one physician and one nurse guilty of conspiracy to commit health care fraud, all for their roles in a home health fraud scheme.
June 21, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Middle District of Tennessee
Livingston Regional Hospital, LLC Agrees To Settle False Claims Act Allegations
Livingston Regional Hospital, LLC, a LifePoint Health Inc. company, has agreed to pay $784,000 to settle allegations that Livingston Regional Hospital violated the False Claims Act, announced United States Attorney Don Cochran for the Middle District of Tennessee.
June 20, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Healogics Agrees to Pay Up to $22.51 Million to Settle False Claims Act Liability for Improper Billing of Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy
The Justice Department announced today that Healogics, Inc. has agreed to pay up to $22.51 million to settle allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by knowingly causing wound care centers to bill Medicare for medically unnecessary and unreasonable hyperbaric oxygen ("HBO") therapy. Healogics, a Florida-based company, manages nearly 700 hospital-based wound care centers across the country.
June 20, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Northern District of Iowa
Nationwide Wound Services Provider Agrees to Pay Nearly $400,000 to Resolve False Claims Act Allegations
Healogics, Inc., a Florida-based provider of wound care services with clinics across the country, agreed to pay $398,162.69 to resolve False Claims Act allegations pertaining to improper coding. Specifically, the United States alleged that, from January 1, 2012, through June 30, 2017, Healogics submitted claims to Medicare, Medicaid, and Tricare using Modifier 25 to signify that a separate evaluation and management service was performed on the same date as another procedure when no such separate service was performed.
June 18, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia Personal Injury Law Firm Agrees to Start Compliance Program and Reimburse the United States for Clients' Medicare Debts
PHILADELPHIA - U.S. Attorney William M. McSwain announced today that a Philadelphia personal injury law firm, Rosenbaum & Associates, and its principal, Jeffrey Rosenbaum, Esq., have entered into a settlement agreement with the United States to resolve allegations that they failed to reimburse the United States for certain Medicare payments the government had previously made to medical providers on behalf of firm clients who sought medical care.
June 15, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
Nurse Practitioner Pleads Guilty in Compounding Pharmacy Fraud Scheme
A Mississippi-based nurse practitioner pleaded guilty for her role in a scheme to defraud health care benefit programs including TRICARE, the health care benefit program serving U.S. military, veterans and their respective family members.
June 12, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Middle District of Alabama
Another Physician Pleads Guilty in the Montgomery "Pill Mill" Prosecution
Montgomery, Ala. - On Monday, June 11, 2018, a physician, Dr. Willie J. Chester, 65, of Pike Road, Alabama, pleaded guilty in the ongoing "pill mill prosecution" arising out of a now-closed Montgomery medical office, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr. That medical practice was known as "Family Practice" and was located at 4143 Atlanta Highway in Montgomery.
June 11, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Western District of Pennsylvania
Redirections Treatment Owner Charged with Unlawfully Distributing Buprenorphine and Defrauding Medicare and Medicaid
PITTSBURGH, PA - The owner of Redirections Treatment Advocates, LLC, an opioid addiction treatment practice with offices in Pennsylvania and West Virginia, has been indicted on charges of unlawfully dispensing controlled substances and health care fraud, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady of the Western District of Pennsylvania and United States Attorney William J. Powell of the Northern District of West Virginia announced today. This indictment is the eleventh in a series of charges filed in western Pennsylvania and northern West Virginia since Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced the formation of the Opioid Fraud and Abuse Detection Unit, a Department of Justice initiative that uses data to target and prosecute individuals that commit opioid-related health care fraud.
June 8, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Signature HealthCARE to Pay More Than $30 Million to Resolve False Claims Act Allegations Related to Rehabilitation Therapy
Signature HealthCARE, LLC (Signature), a Louisville, Kentucky based company that owns and operates approximately 115 skilled nursing facilities, including 7 in middle Tennessee, has agreed to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by knowingly submitting false claims to Medicare for rehabilitation therapy services that were not reasonable, necessary and skilled, the Department of Justice announced today. The settlement also resolves allegations that Signature submitted forged pre-admission certifications of patient need for skilled nursing to the state of Tennessee's Medicaid program. Under the settlement agreements, Signature has agreed to pay more than $30 million. As part of the resolution, the State of Tennessee will receive a portion of the overall settlement.
June 8, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Southern District of Alabama
Former Pain Management Doctor Receives 5 Years in Health Care Fraud Case, Ordered to Pay More Than 15 Million Dollars in Restitution
United States Attorney Richard W. Moore of the Southern District of Alabama announces today that Chief United States District Judge Kristi K. DuBose sentenced Rassan M. Tarabein, 58, a former neurologist residing in Fairhope, Alabama, to 60 months imprisonment in a health care fraud case. The judge ordered that Tarabein pay restitution totaling $15,010,682 to six different health care benefit programs, including Medicare and the Alabama Medicaid Agency. The judge also ordered Tarabein to undergo one year of supervised release after finishing his term of imprisonment, and pay a $200 mandatory special assessment.
June 7, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
Mississippi Physician Sentenced to Over Three Years in Prison for Role in $3 Million Compounding Pharmacy Fraud Scheme
A Biloxi, Mississippi physician was sentenced today to 42 months in prison for his involvement in a $3 million compounding pharmacy fraud scheme.
June 7, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Middle District of Alabama
Former Chief Executive Officer of Health Care Company Charged with Giving Kickbacks to Pill Mill Doctor, Health Care Fraud, and Money Laundering
Montgomery, Ala. - On Thursday, June 7, 2018, a William "Ed" Henry, 47, of Hartselle, Alabama, was arrested on charges stemming from his role in a medical kickback scheme, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr.
June 6, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
Health Care CEO and Four Physicians Charged in Superseding Indictment in Connection with $200 Million Health Care Fraud Scheme Involving Unnecessary Prescription of Controlled Substances and Harmful Injections
A CEO and four physicians were charged today in a superseding indictment as part of an investigation into a $200 million health care fraud scheme that involved a network of Michigan and Ohio pain clinics, laboratories and other medical providers. The superseding indictment returned yesterday charges an additional wire fraud conspiracy, adds an additional count of money laundering, and contains new allegations regarding the distribution of over 4.2 million medically unnecessary dosage units of controlled substances and the administration of medically unnecessary injections that resulted in patient harm.
June 5, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Allegiance Health Management to Pay More Than $1.7 Million to Resolve False Claims Act Allegations
WASHINGTON - The Justice Department announced today that Allegiance Health Management, Inc., (Allegiance), a post-acute healthcare management company based in Shreveport, Louisiana, and four hospitals owned and operated by Allegiance (collectively, the Allegiance Defendants), have agreed to pay more than $1.7 million to resolve False Claims Act allegations that the Allegiance Defendants submitted, and caused other hospitals to submit, claims for reimbursement from Medicare for services that were not medically reasonable or necessary.
June 4, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Operators Of A Mental Health Provider Indicted On Health Care Fraud And Tax Evasion Charges
A federal grand jury sitting in Greensboro, North Carolina returned an indictment, which was unsealed today, charging the operators of a mental health provider with multiple crimes related to the submission of false claims to Medicaid and tax evasion, announced Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Zuckerman and U.S. Attorney Matthew G.T. Martin for the Middle District of North Carolina.
June 4, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Middle District of Florida
Fort Myers Pain Management Physician Pleads Guilty To Healthcare Offenses And Agrees To $2.8 Million Civil Settlement With The United States
Fort Myers, FL - Dr. Michael Frey, M.D. (46, Fort Myers) has pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy to receive healthcare kickbacks. He faces a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison for each count. Dr. Frey also faces a term of supervised release of up to three years for each count. A sentencing date has not yet been set.
June 1, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Nevada
Nurse Practitioners Arrested And Indicted For Unlawful Distribution Of Prescription Opioids And Health Care Fraud
LAS VEGAS, Nev. - Three Southern Nevada residents, including two nurse practitioners, have been arrested and charged in a 29-count indictment for unlawful distribution of prescription opioids and Medicare/Medicaid fraud, announced U.S. Attorney Dayle Elieson for the District of Nevada.

May 2018

May 31, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Middle District of Tennessee
Middle Tennessee Podiatrist Sentenced To Federal Prison For Health Care Fraud Scheme
Dr. John J. Cauthon, 51, of Murfreesboro, Tennessee, was sentenced yesterday in U.S. District Court to two years in prison for healthcare fraud, announced Don Cochran, U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee. Cauthon was indicted in October 2015 on seven counts of healthcare fraud and was found guilty on four counts, after a jury trial in September 2017.
May 31, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Pennsylvania
Pharmacy owners agree to pay $3.2 million to resolve False Claims case
PHILADELPHIA - The owners of I&L Express Pharmacy in Philadelphia have agreed to pay millions to resolve a False Claims Act case against them, U.S. Attorney William M. McSwain announced today.
May 31, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of New Jersey
New York Doctor Sentenced To Four Years In Prison For Taking Bribes In Test-Referral Scheme With New Jersey Clinical Lab
NEWARK, N.J. - A doctor practicing in Staten Island, New York, was sentenced today to 48 months in prison for accepting bribes in exchange for test referrals as part of a long-running and elaborate scheme operated by Biodiagnostic Laboratory Services LLC (BLS), of Parsippany, New Jersey, its president and numerous associates, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.
May 30, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Middle District of Alabama
Mental Health Counselor Indicted for Health Care Fraud and Perjury Offenses Stemming from Montgomery "Pill Mill"
Montgomery, Alabama - On Tuesday, May 29, 2018, a licensed professional counselor was arrested after being indicted by a federal grand jury for her role in working at a Montgomery "pill mill," announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr. The defendant arrested was Johnnie Chaisson Sanders, 48, of Wetumpka.
May 30, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of South Carolina
United States Obtains $114 Million Judgement Against Three Individuals for Paying Kickbacks for Laboratory Referrals and Causing Claims for Medically Unnecessary Tests
WASHINGTON - On May 23, 2018, the United States District Court in the District of South Carolina entered judgment for the United States in the amounts of $111,109,655.30 against defendants LaTonya Mallory, Floyd Calhoun Dent III and Robert Bradford Johnson, and for an additional $3,039,006.56 against Johnson and Dent, the Department of Justice announced today. The judgment follows the January 31, 2018, jury verdict finding the three individuals liable for violating the False Claims Act (FCA) by paying remuneration to physicians in exchange for patient referrals, in violation of the Anti-Kickback Statute, and causing two laboratories to bill federal health care programs for medically unnecessary testing.
May 29, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Minnesota
Walmart, Sam's Club To Pay $825,000 To Resolve Fraud Allegations Concerning Auto Refilling Medicaid Prescriptions
United States Attorney Gregory G. Brooker and Minnesota Attorney General Lori Swanson today announced that Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. and Sam's West, Inc. (d/b/a Sam's Club) have agreed to pay a total of $825,000 to resolve allegations that they violated the False Claims Act and Minnesota False Claims Act by submitting claims for payment to Minnesota's Medicaid program in violation of rules prohibiting Medicaid prescriptions from being automatically refilled.
May 29, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
U.S. Obtains $114 Million Judgment Against Three Individuals For Paying Kickbacks for Laboratory Referrals and Causing Claims for Medically Unnecessary Tests
WASHINGTON - On May 23, 2018, the United States District Court in the District of South Carolina entered judgment for the United States in the amounts of $111,109,655.30 against defendants LaTonya Mallory, Floyd Calhoun Dent III and Robert Bradford Johnson, and for an additional $3,039,006.56 against Johnson and Dent, the Department of Justice announced today. The judgment follows the January 31, 2018, jury verdict finding the three individuals liable for violating the False Claims Act (FCA) by paying remuneration to physicians in exchange for patient referrals, in violation of the Anti-Kickback Statute, and causing two laboratories to bill federal health care programs for medically unnecessary testing.
May 25, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
Doctor Convicted in $8.9 Million Health Care Fraud Scheme
A federal jury found a physician guilty today for her role in a scheme involving approximately $8.9 million in fraudulent Medicare claims for home health care and other physician services that were procured through the payment of kickbacks, were not medically necessary, not actually provided or, in some cases, were provided by the defendant, who was not a licensed physician during the conspiracy.
May 24, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Drug Maker Pfizer Agrees to Pay $23.85 Million to Resolve False Claims Act Liability for Paying Kickbacks
Pharmaceutical company Pfizer, Inc. (Pfizer), based in New York, NY, has agreed to pay $23.85 million to resolve claims that it used a foundation as a conduit to pay the copays of Medicare patients taking three Pfizer drugs, in violation of the False Claims Act, the Justice Department announced today.
May 24, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Connecticut
Torrington Man Involved in Medicaid Fraud Scheme is Sentenced
John H. Durham, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that MAURICE SHARPE, 46, of Torrington, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Victor A. Bolden in Bridgeport to five years of probation for committing health care fraud.
May 23, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Northern District of New York
Investigation Targets Medicaid Transportation Fraud in the North Country
ALBANY, NEW YORK - Twelve people were arrested this week as part of a federal and state investigation into Medicaid fraud allegedly committed by the owners and operators of medical transportation companies based in Essex County.
May 21, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Northern District of New York
Oncologist and Office Manager Sentenced in Connection with Administering Unapproved, Foreign Drugs
ALBANY, NEW YORK - Vincent Koh, M.D., age 73, and his wife and office manager Milly Koh, age 64, of Poughkeepsie, New York, were sentenced today to pay fines of $7,500 and $3,000, respectively, for receiving in interstate commerce and delivering misbranded drugs, a misdemeanor.
May 18, 2018; U.S. Attorney Northern District of New York
Kinderhook Podiatrist Sentenced for Health Care Fraud
ALBANY, NEW YORK - Perrin D. Edwards, D.P.M., age 65, of Kinderhook, New York, was sentenced today to 1 year of probation, 50 hours of community service, and a $5,000 fine for committing health care fraud.
May 18, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Southern District of Florida
Health and Palliative Services of the Treasure Coast, Inc., The Hospice of Martin and St. Lucie, Inc., and Hospice of the Treasure Coast, Inc. Paid $2.5 Million to Settle False Claims Allegations
Health and Palliative Services of the Treasure Coast, Inc., The Hospice of Martin and St. Lucie, Inc., and Hospice of the Treasure Coast, Inc. have paid $2.5 million to settle allegations that they violated the False Claims Act by submitting false claims to Medicare for hospice patients.
May 17, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
Michigan Home Health Agency Owner Pleads Guilty to Health Care Fraud Charges for Role in $8 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme
The owner of a Michigan home health agency pleaded guilty today to fraud charges for his role in a scheme involving approximately $8 million in fraudulent Medicare claims for home health services that were procured through the payment of illegal kickbacks.
May 17, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Connecticut
Community Renewal Team Pays $362,000 to Settle False Claims Acts Allegations
United States Attorney John H. Durham and Connecticut Attorney General George Jepsen today announced that COMMUNITY RENEWAL TEAM and its president, LENA RODRIGUEZ, have entered into a civil settlement agreement with the United States and the State of Connecticut and have paid $362,000 to resolve allegations that they violated the federal and state False Claims Acts.
May 17, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Southern District of New York
Medical Supply Executive Sentenced To 36 Months In Prison For Her Role In A $30 Million Scheme To Defraud Medicare And Medicaid
Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that MARINA BURMAN was sentenced today to 36 months in prison. BURMAN, the former president of a medical supply company, submitted approximately $3.4 million in fraudulent bills to the New York State Medicaid Program, falsely claiming to have dispensed adult diapers and other medical supplies that were not medically necessary and, in many cases, not dispensed at all. BURMAN was sentenced today by United States District Judge Lorna G. Schofield.
May 17 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of New Jersey
Five Former Salesmen For Morris County Clinical Lab Sentenced For Bribing Doctors In $100 Million Test Referral Scheme
NEWARK, N.J. - Five individuals were sentenced today for bribing doctors in exchange for test referrals as part of a long-running and elaborate scheme operated by Biodiagnostic Laboratory Services LLC (BLS), of Parsippany, New Jersey, its president and numerous associates, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.
May 16, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Northern District of Iowa
Dubuque Clinic Agrees to Pay $40,000 in False Claims Penalties To Resolve Allegations Related to 8 Controlled Substance Refills
Crescent Community Health Center, a non-profit health center in Dubuque, Iowa, agreed to pay $40,000 in penalties to resolve False Claims Act allegations that, during a five month period in 2013, Crescent employees who lacked the requisite credentials or authority issued 8 controlled substance refills that were paid for by Medicare or Medicaid. The Center also agreed to pay $7,503.80 to resolve allegations that, during this same period, Crescent employees improperly issued 71 prescriptions or prescription refills for non-controlled substances that were eventually paid for by Medicare or Medicaid.
May 16, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Southern District of Illinois
Carbondale Woman Sentenced On Healthcare Fraud Charges
On May 16, 2018, Stephanie L. Patterson, of Carbondale, Illinois, was sentenced in the U.S. District Court in Benton, Illinois on the charge that she engaged in a scheme to steal from a health care program. The district court sentenced Patterson to five years of probation with the first four months to be served in home detention. She was also ordered to pay $81,131.20 in restitution to the Home Services Program and a $100.00 special assessment.
May 15, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
United States Intervenes in False Claims Act Lawsuits Accusing Insys Therapeutics of Paying Kickbacks and Engaging in Other Unlawful Practices to Promote Subsys, A Powerful Opioid Painkiller
On April 13, 2018, the United States intervened in five lawsuits accusing Insys Therapeutics Inc., of violating the False Claims Act in connection with the marketing of Subsys, an opioid painkiller manufactured and sold by Insys, the Department of Justice announced today. Subsys is a sublingual spray form of fentanyl, a powerful, but highly addictive, opioid painkiller. In 2012, Subsys was approved by the Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of persistent breakthrough pain in adult cancer patients who are already receiving, and tolerant to, around-the-clock opioid therapy.
May 15, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Middle District of Alabama
Physician, Nurse Practitioner, and Nurse Plead Guilty in Montgomery "Pill Mill" Case
Montgomery, Alabama - During the past few weeks, three more health care providers have pleaded guilty in the ongoing "pill mill" prosecution arising out of a now-closed Montgomery medical office, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr. That medical practice was known as "Family Practice" and was located at 4143 Atlanta Highway in Montgomery. In November of last year, the practice's owner, Dr. Gilberto Sanchez, pleaded guilty to drug distribution, health care fraud, and money laundering charges. The details of each new guilty plea are as follows.
May 14, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Connecticut
Ellington Psychiatrist and Mental Health Clinic Pay Over $800,000 to Settle False Claims Act Allegations
United States Attorney John H. Durham and Connecticut Attorney General George Jepsen today announced that DR. ERUM SHAHAB and WAIRE, LLC, doing business as ELLINGTON BEHAVIORAL HEALTH ("EBH"), have entered into a civil settlement agreement with the federal and state governments in which they will pay $805,071 to resolve allegations that they violated the federal and state False Claims Acts.
May 14, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of New Jersey
Psychiatrist Admits Signing Phony Medical Records To Deceive State Inspectors
CAMDEN, N.J. - The psychiatrist of a nonprofit mental health services provider for Camden's poorest residents today admitted signing fraudulent treatment plans meant to mislead New Jersey Medicaid inspectors, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.
May 14, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Missouri
United States Reaches $125,000 Civil Settlement
St. Louis, Missouri: The United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Missouri announced today that the United States, Foot Healers Holdings - St. Louis and its subsidiaries (Foot Healers) reached a civil settlement that will resolve the United States' claims against Foot Healers under the False Claims Act for knowingly submitting false claims to Medicare for podiatry services. According to the United States' allegations, from March 1, 2010 through July 31, 2016, Foot Healers submitted false claims to Medicare by using improper modifiers that caused Medicare to pay for improper claims and by submitting claims for payment which falsely indicated a medically necessary toenail debridement was provided when the service actually provided was a routine nail trimming not covered by Medicare. As part of the civil settlement, Foot Healers will repay the United States $125,000.
May 14, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Maryland
United States Reaches Settlement With Riverdale Internist To Resolve False Claims Act Allegations Relating To Medically Unnecessary Procedures
Baltimore, Maryland - Sureshkumar Muttath, M.D., an internist in Riverdale, Maryland, has agreed to pay the United States $1,526,038 to settle allegations that he submitted false claims to the United States for medically unnecessary autonomic nervous function tests and neurobehavioral status exams.
May 10, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Ohio Hospital Operator Agrees to Pay United States $14.25 Million to Settle Alleged False Claims Act Violations Arising From Improper Payments to Physicians
WASHINGTON - Mercy Health, a nonprofit organization based in Cincinnati that operates healthcare facilities in Ohio and Kentucky, has agreed to pay the United States $14,250,000 to settle allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by engaging in improper financial relationships with referring physicians, the Justice Department announced today.
May 10, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Northern District of Georgia
Medical assistant resolves false claims act allegations
ATLANTA - Robert Gennaro, a medical assistant, has agreed to be excluded from federal healthcare programs for a period of 10 years to resolve allegations that he impersonated a physician when providing remote surgical monitoring services, causing the submission of false claims to the federal government. The effect of the exclusion is federal healthcare programs will not make any payments to Gennaro, or anyone who employs him, for any services provided by Gennaro.
May 10, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of New Jersey
Doctor Sentenced to Two Years in Prison for Taking Bribes in Test-Referral Scheme with New Jersey Clinical Lab
NEWARK, N.J. - A Monmouth County doctor with practices in Colts Neck, New Jersey, and Staten Island, New York, was sentenced today to 24 months in prison for accepting bribes in exchange for test referrals as part of a long-running and elaborate scheme operated by Biodiagnostic Laboratory Services LLC (BLS), of Parsippany, New Jersey, its president and numerous associates, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.
May 10, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Middle District of Pennsylvania
Former Registered Nurse Sentenced To Six Years' Imprisonment For Health Care Fraud
HARRISBURG - The United States Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that Joan Cicchiello, age 67, of Annville and Mount Carmel, Pennsylvania, was sentenced on May 9, 2018, to 72 months' imprisonment and three years of supervised release by United States District Court Judge John E. Jones, II on Health Care Fraud related charges.
May 9, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Connecticut
Windsor Woman Who Defrauded Medicaid Program is Sentenced
John H. Durham, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, Phillip Coyne, Special Agent in Charge for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, and Chief State's Attorney Kevin T. Kane today announced that BEVERLY COKER, 70, of Windsor, was sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Judge Victor A. Bolden in Bridgeport to five years of probation for defrauding Connecticut's Medicaid program.
May 8, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of New Hampshire
Resident of Webster, New York Sentenced for Health Care Fraud
CONCORD - Judith Morale (formerly known as Judith Remo), 55, of Webster, New York, was sentenced to three years of probation following her conviction for health care fraud, announced United States Attorney Scott W. Murray.
May 8, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Middle District of Pennsylvania
Charles Cole Memorial Hospital Agrees To Settle Over Billing Allegations
HARRISBURG - The United States Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that on May 4, 2018, Charles Cole Memorial Hospital, a Pennsylvania nonprofit corporation in Coudersport, Pennsylvania, agreed to pay the United States $373,547.54 to settle allegations from two self-disclosures by Charles Cole to the Office of Inspector General for the United States Department of Health and Human Services (OIG) through the OIG's Provider Self-Disclosure Protocol.
May 7, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Western District of Pennsylvania
Three Physicians Agree to Pay Total of $700,000 to Settle Alleged False Claims Act Violations Arising from Improper Financial Relationship with Drug Testing Laboratory
PITTSBURGH - Dr. Robert Fetchero, D.O., of Jeannette, Pennsylvania, Dr. Sridhar Pinnamaneni, M.D., of Windermere, Florida, and Dr. Thelma Green-Mack, M.D., of Zionsville, Indiana, separately agreed to settle allegations that they each received improper payments for referrals from Greensburg, Pennsylvania drug testing lab Universal Oral Fluid Laboratories, and caused false claims to be submitted to Medicare for drug testing services, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today. These settlements follow the earlier guilty plea on related charges of Dr. John H. Johnson of Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania, who had served as UOFL's medical director.
May 4, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Southern District of Iowa
Des Moines Durable Medical Equipment Company to Pay $189,061.90 to Resolve Overbilling Allegations Related to Medicaid Recipients
DES MOINES, Iowa - Catholic Health Initiatives-Health at Home d/b/a Mercy Respiratory Care and Med Supply (CHI-MRC), a supplier of durable medical equipment in Des Moines, has agreed to pay $189,061.90 to the United States to resolve allegations it overbilled the State of Iowa's Medicaid program for purchases of durable medical equipment.
May 3, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Five Pennsylvania Physicians Charged with Unlawfully Distributing Buprenorphine and Defrauding Medicare and Medicaid
Five physicians of Redirections Treatment Advocates, LLC, an opioid addiction treatment practice with offices in Pennsylvania and West Virginia, have been indicted on charges of unlawfully dispensing controlled substances and health care fraud, Attorney General Jeff Sessions, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady of the Western District of Pennsylvania and United States Attorney William J. Powell of the Northern District of West Virginia announced today. These indictments represent the latest in a series of charges filed since Attorney General Sessions announced the formation of the Opioid Fraud and Abuse Detection Unit, a Department of Justice initiative that uses data to target and prosecute individuals that commit opioid-related health care fraud.
May 3, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Maryland
Masstech, Richard Lee, And Arnold Lee To Pay U.S. $1.9 Million To Settle False Claims Act Allegations Relating To Small Business Innovation Research Awards
Baltimore, Maryland - Columbia-based MassTech, Inc., its former Chief Executive Officer, Arnold Lee, and its former Chief Financial Officer, Richard Lee, have agreed to pay the United States $1.9 million to resolve allegations that MassTech falsely certified it was a small business concern in order to obtain Small Business Innovation Research ("SBIR") awards.
May 3, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Western District of Pennsylvania
Former UPMC Radiologist Pleads Guilty to Health Care Fraud and Unlawfully Prescribing Vicodin
PITTSBURGH, PA - A former radiologist at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center waived indictment and pleaded guilty in federal court to charges of unlawfully distributing controlled substances and health care fraud, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
May 2, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
Southern Texas Patient Recruiter Convicted in $3.6 Million Home Health Care Fraud Scheme
A federal jury found Mercy O. Ainabe, a patient recruiter for Texas Tender Care, guilty today for her role in a $3.6 million Medicare fraud scheme involving fraudulent claims for home health services.
May 2, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of North Carolina
Eastern Carolina Behavioral Health CEO Sentenced to Eight Years in Prison for Expansive Multistate Healthcare Fraud
RALEIGH - United States Attorney Robert J. Higdon, Jr. announced that yesterday afternoon in federal court, SHEPHARD LEE SPRUILL, 47, of Greenville, North Carolina, was sentenced to 96 months in prison on the charge of Health Care Fraud Conspiracy, and 60 months in prison for Perjury, to be served concurrently. Spruill was also ordered to make restitution in the total amount of $5,998,874.86, payable to the North Carolina Medicaid Program, the South Carolina Medicaid Program, and another victim of the scheme. Spruill was further ordered to serve a three year term of supervised release, and to forfeit an additional $939,989.50 in criminal proceeds. Under the terms of his plea agreement, Spruill is also banned from participation in Federal healthcare benefit programs for life.
May 1, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Maine
Lewiston-Auburn Men Indicted for Health Care Fraud
Portland, Maine: United States Attorney Halsey B. Frank announced today that a federal Grand Jury sitting in Portland handed down an indictment charging Abdirashid Ahmed, 38, of Lewiston and Garat Osman, 32, of Auburn, with health care fraud involving the MaineCare program and soliciting and receiving health care kickbacks from May 2015 through December 2017.

April 2018

April 30, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Massachusetts
Springfield Doctor Convicted by Jury of Illegally Sharing Patient Medical Files
BOSTON - A Springfield gynecologist was convicted today in connection with allowing a pharmaceutical sales representative to access patient records and lying to federal investigators.
April 27, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Connecticut
Substance Abuse Treatment Providers Pay More Than $1.3 Million to Settle False Claims Act Allegations
United States Attorney John H. Durham and Connecticut Attorney General George Jepsen today announced that NEW ERA REHABILITATION CENTER, DR. EBENEZER KOLADE and DR. CHRISTINA KOLADE have entered into a civil settlement agreement with the federal and state governments in which they will pay $1,378,533 to resolve allegations that they violated the federal and state False Claims Acts.
April 27, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Nevada
Cardiovascular And Thoracic Surgeons Of Nevada Inc. Agrees To Pay $1.5 Million To Settle False Claims Act Allegations
LAS VEGAS, Nev. - Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgeons of Nevada, Inc. (CTS), a Las Vegas medical practice whose principal physician is Dr. Bashir Chowdhry, has agreed to pay $1.5 million to the United States to resolve allegations relating to its potential liability under the civil False Claims Act.
April 26, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Owner of Florida Pharmacy Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison for $100 Million Compounding Pharmacy Fraud Scheme
The president and owner of a Florida pharmacy that was at the center of a massive compounding pharmacy fraud scheme, which impacted private insurance companies, Medicare and TRICARE, was sentenced today to 180 months in prison and ordered to pay $54 million in restitution for his role in the scheme. Six other individuals have previously been sentenced in connection to the scheme, and another is scheduled to be sentenced on Monday, April 30. Various real properties, cars and a 50-foot boat were forfeited as part of the sentencings.
April 26, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Southern District of Ohio
Athens County Home Health Care Agency Owner Sentenced for Committing $2M Fraud
COLUMBUS, Ohio - Cheryl McGrath, 50, of Guysville, Ohio, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court to 36 months in prison for committing health care fraud and willful failure to pay over tax.
April 24, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Maryland
Waldorf Man Sentenced To 4 Years In Prison For Running Oxycodone Pill Mill
Baltimore, Maryland - On April 23, 2018, United States District Judge Marvin J. Garbis sentenced Thomas Dalton, age 31, of Waldorf, Maryland to four years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for conspiracy to distribute and possession with the intent to distribute a mixture or substance containing a detectable amount of oxycodone.
April 20, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
Miami Man Sentenced to More Than Eight Years in Prison for Role in $10 Million Health Care Fraud Scheme
A Miami, Florida man was sentenced to 97 months in prison today for his role in an approximately $10 million health care fraud scheme involving a now-defunct home health clinic and two sham physical rehabilitation clinics located in Miami.
April 19, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Southern District of New York
New York City Pharmacy Owner Pleads Guilty To Committing $8.5 Million Fraud On Medicare And Medicaid
Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that SAJID JAVED, an owner and operator of nine different pharmacies in the New York City area, pled guilty today to participating in a health care fraud scheme that used his pharmacies to submit more than $8.5 million in fraudulent claims to Medicare and Medicaid. JAVED was arrested in 2016 as part of an unprecedented nationwide sweep led by the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, resulting in criminal and civil charges against more than 300 individuals for their alleged participation in health care fraud schemes involving approximately $900 million in false billings. JAVED pled guilty in Manhattan federal court today before the Honorable Vernon S. Broderick.
April 19, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Connecticut
Bristol Woman Sentenced to 4 Years in Federal Prison for Defrauding Medicaid Program
John H. Durham, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, Phillip Coyne, Special Agent in Charge for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, and Chief State's Attorney Kevin T. Kane announced that RONNETTE BROWN, 45, of Bristol, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Victor A. Bolden in Bridgeport to 48 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release for defrauding Connecticut's Medicaid program.
April 18, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Hawaii
Oahu Physical Therapist Pleads Guilty To Health Care Fraud
HONOLULU - Garrett Okubo, of Honolulu, Hawaii, pled guilty today in federal court to four counts of health care fraud in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1347.
April 17, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Tennessee
Occupational Therapist Owner of TSM Sentenced for Making False and Fraudulent Statements Related to Health Care Benefits
GREENEVILLE, Tenn. - On April 16, 2018, Jose Penaranda Tan, 58, of Morristown, Tennessee, was sentenced by the Honorable J. Ronnie Greer, U.S. District Judge, to serve 12 months and one day in federal prison. In addition to his prison sentence, Tan must also pay restitution to Medicare, Medicaid (known as TennCare in the state of Tennessee), Cigna, Optum, and Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS) of Tennessee in an amount to be determined by Judge Greer.
April 16, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Former Employee of Southern California Ambulance Company Sentenced to Prison for Role in Medicare Fraud Scheme
A former employee of a Southern California ambulance company was sentenced today to 36 months in prison for his role in a scheme that resulted in more than $1.1 million in fraudulent claims to Medicare.
April 16, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Maryland
Allergan To Pay $3.5 Million To Settle False Claims Act Allegations Relating To LAP-BAND Bariatric Medical Device
Baltimore, Maryland - New Jersey-based Allergan Inc. has agreed to pay $3.5 million to resolve allegations that Allergan caused health care providers to submit false claims to Medicare and other federal healthcare programs relating to the LAP-BAND Adjustable Gastric Banding System, a device approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for weight reduction for adult patients with obesity who have failed more conservative weight-reduction alternatives.
April 16, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Kentucky
London Cardiologist Convicted of Health Care Fraud for Medically Unnecessary Pacemakers
LONDON, Ky. - On April 11, 2018, a federal jury convicted London physician Dr. Anis Chalhoub of health care fraud. The jury returned its guilty verdict after twelve days of trial, during which it heard evidence that Dr. Chalhoub defrauded Medicare, Medicaid, and other insurers by implanting medically unnecessary pacemakers in his patients and causing the unnecessary procedures and follow-up care to be billed to health insurance programs.
April 16, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Western District of Pennsylvania
MedFast Pharmacist Sentenced to Prison for Misbranded Drug Scheme
PITTSBURGH, PA - A resident of Butler County, Pennsylvania, has been sentenced in federal court to one year and one day incarceration on his conviction of conspiracy, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
April 12, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Arizona
Banner Health Agrees to Pay Over $18 Million to Settle False Claims Act Allegations
PHOENIX - Banner Health has agreed to pay the United States over $18 million to settle allegations that 12 of its hospitals in Arizona and Colorado knowingly submitted false claims to Medicare by admitting patients who could have been treated on a less costly outpatient basis, the United States Attorney's Office for the District of Arizona announced today. Headquartered in Arizona, Banner Health owns and operates 28 acute-care hospitals in multiple states.
April 12, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Michigan
Four Area Pharmacists, One Doctor, and One Patient Recruiter Charged with Scheme to Bill Insurance for Medications Not Dispensed
An indictment was unsealed today charging Samir Berri, R.Ph.; Anthony Cole, R.Ph.; Shamimur Rahman, R.Ph.; Ghassan Hamka, R.Ph.; Asm Akter Ahmed, M.D.; and Fouzi Ramouni with multiple health care fraud offenses, U.S. Attorney Matthew Schneider announced today. Berri, Ahmed and Ramouni are also charged with distributing and conspiring to distribute controlled substances (all opioids).
April 10, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Southern District of New York
Previously Convicted Physician Arrested For Fraud And Aggravated Identity Theft
Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today that SPYROS PANOS, a former orthopedic surgeon, who was previously convicted of health care fraud, was charged with wire fraud, health care fraud, and aggravated identity theft, in connection with a scheme in which he assumed the identity of a licensed orthopedic surgeon and obtained over $860,000 in payments for reviewing patient files in Workers Compensation cases. PANOS was arrested this morning at his home in Hopewell Junction, New York, and was presented before U.S. Magistrate Judge Paul E. Davison in White Plains federal court this morning.
April 9, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
Two Tennessee Health Care Executives Charged for Role in $4.6 Million Medicare Kickback Scheme
Two Tennessee health care executives were charged in an indictment unsealed today for their alleged participation in a $4.6 million Medicare kickback scheme involving durable medical equipment (DME).
April 9, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Pennsylvania
Doctor Sentenced to 24 Months in Prison for Selling Prescriptions of Suboxone and Klonopin
PHILADELPHIA - Dr. Azad Khan, 64, of Villanova, PA, was sentenced to 24 months in prison by the Honorable Lawrence F. Stengel in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. A federal jury found Khan guilty on July 25, 2017 of conspiracy to distribute controlled substances and two counts of distribution of controlled substances, all arising from Khan's employment at a clinic run by co-defendant Dr. Alan Summers.
April 4, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
New Orleans-Area Woman Pleads Guilty to Scheme to Possess Oxycodone by Fraud and to Possess With Intent to Distribute Oxycodone on the Black Market
A New Orleans, Louisiana-area woman pleaded guilty today for her participation in a scheme to obtain oxycodone through fraud by creating fictitious prescriptions and to possess with intent to distribute oxycodone on the black market.
April 3, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Missouri
St. Louis Doctor and Nurse Practitioner Indicted for Conspiracy and Submitting False Claims
St. Louis, MO - Dr. Brij R. Vaid, 56, and Donna A. Waldo, 57, both of St. Louis County, Missouri, were charged by Indictment with conspiracy to submit false and fraudulent claims to Medicare and Medicaid regarding "face to face" office visits submitted under Dr. Vaid's personal billing number while he was actually out of town. Dr. Vaid was also charged with six counts of making and presenting false claims to the United States.

March 2018

March 30, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Middle District of Florida
Pharmacy Owner And Pharmacist Sentenced To 160 Months In Prison For $4.3 Million Pain And Scar Cream Kickback Scheme Against Military Insurance Program
Orlando, FL - The owner of an Orlando-area pharmacy, who was also a licensed pharmacist, was sentenced today for his role in a kickback scheme involving pain and scar creams that resulted in the payment of approximately $4.3 million in false and fraudulent claims to TRICARE. TRICARE provides coverage for active duty military members and their families, as well as retired veterans.
March 29, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
Michigan Home Health Agency Assistant Director of Nursing Sentenced to Three Years in Prison for Role in $1.6 Million Health Care Fraud Scheme
The assistant director of nursing of a Michigan home health agency was sentenced to 36 months in prison today for his role in a scheme involving approximately $1.6 million in fraudulent Medicare claims for home health services that were procured through the payment of kickbacks, and that were medically unnecessary and not provided.
March 29, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Radiation Therapy Company Agrees to Pay Up to $11.5 Million to Settle Allegations of False Claims and Kickbacks
Texas-based SightLine Health LLC (SightLine), which operates radiation therapy centers throughout the United States, has agreed to settle a False Claims Act lawsuit alleging that it knowingly submitted claims to the Medicare program that violated the Anti Kickback Statute, the Justice Department announced today. Together with Integrated Oncology Network Holdings LLC (ION), which acquired SightLine in 2011, SightLine has agreed to pay the government up to $11.5 million.
March 29, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Northern District of Georgia
Orthopaedic and anesthesia providers to pay $3.2 million to settle false claim act allegations
ATLANTA - The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Georgia has announced that Georgia Bone & Joint (GBJ), Southern Bone & Joint a/k/a Summit Orthopaedic Surgery Center (Summit Surgery Center), Southern Crescent Anesthesiology, PC (SCA), Sentry Anesthesia Management, LLC (Sentry), and David LaGuardia (LaGuardia) agreed to pay $3.2 million to settle allegations that LaGuardia, Sentry, and SCA provided a free medical director to Summit Surgery Center in order to induce it to choose to perform more procedures at the surgery center rather than in the GBJ office; and that GBJ and LaGuardia caused the submission of false claims to Medicare for prescription drugs purchased outside of the United States and not approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
March 29, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Middle District of Florida
Owners Of Pasco County Marketing Firm Indicted For Paying Healthcare Kickbacks And Money Laundering
Tampa, Florida - An indictment has been unsealed charging Frank V. Monte (38, Valrico) and Kimberley S. Anderson (50, New Port Richey) with one count of conspiracy, five counts of paying healthcare kickbacks, one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering, and three counts of illegal monetary transactions. Monte is also charged with two counts of making false statements. If convicted, each faces a maximum penalty of 5 years in federal prison for the conspiracy count, up to 5 years' imprisonment for each count of paying a kickback, and up to 10 years in federal prison for each money laundering and monetary transaction charge. Monte faces up to 5 years' imprisonment on each false statement charge. The indictment also notifies Monte and Anderson that the United States intends to forfeit cash, vehicles, and real estate, all of which are alleged to be traceable to proceeds of the offenses.
March 29, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Northern District of Texas
Radiation Therapy Company Agrees to Pay Up to $11.5 Million to Settle Allegations of False Claims and Kickbacks
DALLAS - Texas-based SightLine Health LLC (SightLine), which operates radiation therapy centers throughout the United States, has agreed to settle a False Claims Act lawsuit alleging that it knowingly submitted claims to the Medicare program that violated the Anti Kickback Statute, the Justice Department announced today. Together with Integrated Oncology Network Holdings LLC (ION), which acquired SightLine in 2011, SightLine has agreed to pay the government up to $11.5 million. The announcement was made today by U.S. Attorney Erin Nealy Cox of the Northern District of Texas.
March 28, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Michigan
Hearing Aid Dealer and Hearing Aid Salesman Charged with Health Care Fraud and Aggravated Identity Theft
An indictment was unsealed today charging Rasko "Ron" Djordjevic and Milija "Mike" Perkovic with health care fraud, conspiracy to commit health care fraud, and aggravated identity theft, U.S. Attorney Matthew Schneider announced today. Chang is also charged with health care fraud.
March 28, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
New Orleans Woman Sentenced to Prison for Role in $3.2 Million Health Care Fraud and Kickback Scheme
A New Orleans, Louisiana woman was sentenced today to 32 months in prison for her involvement in a $3.2 million Medicare fraud and kickback scheme.
March 28, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Ambulance Company to Pay $9 Million to Settle False Claims Act Allegations
Medical Transport LLC, a Virginia Beach-based provider of ambulance services, agreed to pay $9 million to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by submitting false claims for ambulance transports, the Justice Department announced today.
March 28, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of New Jersey
Bergen County, New Jersey, Doctor Sentenced To 18 Months In Prison For Role In Test-Referral Bribe Scheme With New Jersey Clinical Lab
NEWARK, N.J. - A Bergen County, New Jersey, doctor was sentenced today to 18 months in prison for his role in a test-referral bribe scheme operated by Biodiagnostic Laboratory Services LLC (BLS), of Parsippany, New Jersey, its president and numerous associates, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.
March 27, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Middle District of Florida
Two Behavioral Health Clinic Operators Sentenced To Prison In Healthcare Fraud Conspiracy
Jacksonville, FL - Shawn Thorpe (30) and Ruben McLain (46), both of Winston Salem, North Carolina, have been sentenced to prison for their participation in a conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud. Thorpe was sentenced to 2 years' imprisonment and McLain was sentenced to 4 years and 9 months in federal prison. Thorpe and McLain were also ordered to pay $211,311.20 and $1,159,050.51, respectively, in restitution to their victims.
March 26, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Western District of Pennsylvania
Optometrist Sentenced to 33 Months in Prison For Health Care Fraud Involving At Least $250,000 In Losses
PITTSBURGH - A resident of Hazelet, New Jersey, was sentenced in federal court for engaging in health care fraud, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
March 26, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of New Jersey
Doctor Gets Three Years In Prison For Billing Medicare, Other Insurers $3 Million For Therapy Services Performed By Unqualified Personnel
NEWARK, N.J. - A doctor with offices in Paterson, Passaic, and Elizabeth was sentenced today to 36 months in prison for defrauding Medicare and private insurance companies out of $3 million by billing them for over 150,000 physical therapy sessions that were performed by unlicensed and unqualified personnel, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.
March 23, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Alere to Pay U.S. $33.2 Million to Settle False Claims Act Allegations Relating to Unreliable Diagnostic Testing Devices
Massachusetts-based medical device manufacturer Alere Inc. and its subsidiary Alere San Diego (Alere) have agreed to pay the United States $33.2 million to resolve allegations that Alere caused hospitals to submit false claims to Medicare, Medicaid, and other federal healthcare programs by knowingly selling materially unreliable point-of-care diagnostic testing devices, the Justice Department announced today.
March 23, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Middle District of Florida
United States Intervenes In Lawsuit Against Oviedo Company And Local Businessman Alleging Medicare Fraud
Orlando, Florida - The United States filed a civil lawsuit today against Central Medical Systems, LLC (CMS) and Alan Trent Harley alleging that they had falsely billed Medicare for wound care supplies during a six-year period. The complaint alleges that CMS and its owner, Harley, violated the federal False Claims Act by seeking and receiving inflated Medicare payments for more expensive products than had been provided to patients or for products that were never sent.
March 23, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of New Hampshire
Two University of New Hampshire Employees Charged with Theft of Government Funds
CONCORD - United States Attorney Scott W. Murray announced today that two employees of the University of New Hampshire (UNH) have been charged with stealing money from federal research grants.
March 22, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Massachusetts
Pain Management Physician Sentenced to Eight Years for Health Care Fraud and Money Laundering
BOSTON - A Dover, Mass., pain management physician was sentenced today in federal court in Boston in connection with his scheme to defraud Medicare and other health care insurers, and then using the proceeds of his illegal activity to support his extravagant lifestyle.
March 22, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Maryland
United States Reaches Settlement With Four Facilities And Two Medical Companies To Resolve Allegations Of Fraudulent Billing In Skilled Nursing Facilities
Baltimore, Maryland - The United States Attorney's Office announced today that it reached an agreement with four skilled nursing facilities and two consulting companies with which they contracted to resolve allegations of fraudulent billing of Medicare for the provision of skilled therapy to Medicare and Tricare beneficiaries. The four skilled nursing facilities and the two consulting companies have agreed to pay a total of $6 million in order to resolve the allegations. Caring Heart Rehabilitation and Nursing Center agreed to pay the United States $1,272,891.00. GNH, LLC agreed to pay $811,153.36. OPOP, LLC agreed to pay $608,365.02. Riverview SNF, LLC agreed to pay $1,206,590.62. Global Healthcare Services Group, LLC agreed to pay $190,000. GHC Clinical Consultants, LLC agreed to pay $1,810,000.00.
March 19, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Pennsylvania
United States Resolves Claims That Philadelphia Cardiologist Billed Medicare For Unnecessary Stent Procedures
PHILADELPHIA - Vidya Banka, M.D., a cardiologist and former director of Pennsylvania Hospital's cardiac catheterization lab, has entered into a settlement agreement with the United States to resolve allegations that he improperly submitted Medicare claims for unnecessary cardiac stent procedures.
March 16, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Maryland
United States Reaches Settlement With Maryland Healthcare Providers To Settle False Claims Act Allegations Relating To In Office Testing
Baltimore, Maryland - The United States Attorney's Office announced today that it has in recent weeks reached settlements with four health care providers to settle claims that they submitted false claims to the United States for services not rendered.
March 16, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Western District of Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh Doctor Charged with Unlawfully Dispensing Vicodin and Defrauding the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Health Plan
PITTSBURGH, PA - A Pittsburgh radiologist has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh on charges of unlawfully dispensing controlled substances and health care fraud, Attorney General Jeff Sessions and United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today. This indictment is the second in Western Pennsylvania since Attorney General Sessions announced the formation of the Opioid Fraud and Abuse Detection Unit, a Department of Justice initiative that uses data to target and prosecute individuals that commit opioid-related health care fraud.
March 16, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Southern District of New York
Five Manhattan Doctors Indicted For Accepting Bribes And Kickbacks From A Pharmaceutical Company In Exchange For Prescribing Powerful Fentanyl Narcotic
Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and William F. Sweeney Jr., the Assistant Director-in-Charge of the New York Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation ("FBI"), announced the unsealing today of an Indictment in Manhattan federal court charging five Manhattan doctors, GORDON FREEDMAN, JEFFREY GOLDSTEIN, TODD SCHLIFSTEIN, DIALECTI VOUDOURIS, and ALEXANDRU BURDUCEA, with participating in a scheme to receive bribes and kickbacks in the form of fees for sham educational programs ("Speaker Programs") from a pharmaceutical company ("Pharma Company-1") in exchange for prescribing millions of dollars' worth of a potent fentanyl-based spray manufactured by Pharma Company-1 (the "Fentanyl Spray"), among other offenses. FREEDMAN, GOLDSTEIN, SCHLIFSTEIN, VOUDOURIS, and BURDUCEA were arrested this morning. All are expected to be presented before U.S. Magistrate Judge Sarah Netburn in Manhattan this afternoon.
March 16, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of New Jersey
Somerset County Man Indicted for Role in $1 Million Medicare Fraud that Deceived Seniors into Unnecessary DNA Tests
NEWARK, N.J. -A Somerset County, New Jersey, man was indicted by a federal grand jury today for using the purported non-profit The Good Samaritans of America to defraud the Medicare Program of more than $1 million by convincing hundreds of senior citizens to submit to unnecessary genetic testing, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.
March 15, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Missouri
Warren County Doctor Indicted for Illegal Prescriptions of Opioid Narcotic Drugs to Three Women
St. Louis, MO - Philip D. Dean, M.D., 62, of Warrenton, Missouri, was indicted today with eight felony charges for making false statements to Medicare and Medicaid and illegally distributing fentanyl, hydrocodone, and other controlled prescription drugs without a legitimate medical purpose.
March 14, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Tennessee
Physician Owner of HNC and Wife Sentenced for Health Care Fraud Offenses Involving Prescription Opiate Pain Medication
GREENEVILLE, Tenn. - On March 14, 2018, Dr. Abdelrahman Mohamed, 64, and Cecilia Manacsa, 59, both of Morristown, Tennessee, were sentenced by the Honorable J. Ronnie Greer, U.S. District Judge, to serve 36 months and 16 months respectively in federal prison. In addition to his prison sentence, Mohamed also paid $730,000 in restitution.
March 14, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Three Miami-Area Home Health Agency Owners Charged for Role in Health Care Fraud Scheme
Three Miami, Florida-area home health agency owners were charged in an indictment unsealed yesterday for their alleged participation in a health care fraud scheme involving a now-defunct home health agency in Miami.
March 13, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Los Angeles Dentist Charged in Health Care Fraud Scheme
A Los Angeles, California-based dentist was charged in an indictment unsealed on Monday for his alleged participation in a health care fraud and identity theft scheme.
March 12, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Southern District of California
Doctor Allegedly Prescribed Opioids for Dead and Incarcerated People in "Pill Mill" Operation; Doctor and Seven Others Arrested and Charged
SAN DIEGO - Egisto Salerno, a medical doctor, who owns and operates a medical office on El Cajon Boulevard in San Diego, and seven others have been arrested on federal charges stemming from their alleged roles in a conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute hydrocodone as part of a 'pill mill' operation.
March 9, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Rhode Island
Doctor Sentenced for Healthcare Fraud, Accepting Kickbacks to Prescribe Highly Addictive Version of Fentanyl
PROVIDENCE, RI - Dr. Jerrold N. Rosenberg, 63 of Warren, the operator of a now-defunct pain management practice in Rhode Island, was sentenced today to 51 months in federal prison for committing healthcare fraud and for conspiring to solicit and receive kickbacks in return for prescribing the drug Subsys, a fast-acting, powerful, and highly-addictive version of the opioid drug Fentanyl.
March 8, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of California
Kmart Corporation Pays $525,000 to Settle False Claims Act Allegations of Improper Medi-Cal Billings
SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Kmart Corporation has paid $525,000 to resolve allegations that it violated the federal False Claims Act when it knowingly submitted claims for reimbursement to California's Medi Cal program that were not supported by applicable diagnosis and documentation requirements, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced today.
March 7, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Southern District of Florida
Florida Dermatologist Agrees to Pay $2.5 Million to Resolve Allegations of Billing Fraud
Tim Ioannides, M.D., a dermatologist and owner of Treasure Coast Dermatology in Vero Beach and Port St. Lucie, Florida has agreed to pay $2.5 million to resolve allegations that he violated the False Claims Act by billing Medicare and TRICARE for procedures he did not perform, the United States Attorney's Office announced today. Dr. Ioannides also agreed to operate under an integrity agreement with the Department of Health & Humans Services, Office of Inspector General for 3 years.
March 6, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Northern District of Iowa
Oelwein Chiropractor and Clinic Agree to Pay Nearly $80,000 to Resolve False Claims Act Allegations Involving Free Electrical Stimulation
Bradley Brown, D.C., from Oelwein, Iowa, and his clinic, Brown Chiropractic, P.C., have agreed to pay $79,919 to resolve allegations Brown violated the False Claims Act by improperly billing Medicare and Medicaid for chiropractic adjustments after providing free electrical stimulation to beneficiaries to influence those beneficiaries to receive chiropractic adjustments from Brown. The government alleged that this conduct violated the Anti-Kickback Statute and, in turn, the False Claims Act. The claims at issue were submitted between January 1, 2012, and September 30, 2016.
March 6, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Northern District of Illinois
Owner of North Suburban Home Health Care Company Sentenced to 18 Months in Prison for Cash-for-Patients Kickback Scheme
CHICAGO - The owner of a north suburban home health care company has been sentenced to 18 months in federal prison for paying illegal kickbacks for patient referrals.
March 5, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Southern District of Mississippi
Biloxi Physician Convicted for Role in $3 Million Compounding Pharmacy Fraud Scheme
WASHINGTON - A federal jury found a Biloxi, Mississippi physician guilty Friday for his role in an approximately $3 million compounding pharmacy fraud scheme.
March 1, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Middle District of Alabama
Another Doctor and a Nurse Indicted for Participating in the Operation of a Montgomery "Pill Mill"
Montgomery, AL - On Wednesday, February 28, 2018, a physician and nurse were arrested after being indicted in the ongoing investigation and prosecution of a "pill mill" being operated out of a Montgomery, Alabama medical office. The two new defendants in this case are physician Willie J. Chester, Jr., 64, of Pike Road, Alabama, and nurse Stephanie Michelle Ott, 42, of Fairhope, Alabama. Previously charged in this investigation were nurse practitioners Lillian Akwuba and Elizabeth Cronier, physician Julio Delgado, and clerical workers Misty Michelle Fannin, Jacqueline Suzanne Brownfield, and Akash Kumar.

February 2018

February 28, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Southern District of Florida
Owner of Numerous Miami-Area Home Health Agencies Sentenced to 20 Years in Prison for Role in $66 Million Medicare Fraud Conspiracy
The owner and operator of numerous Miami, Florida-area home health agencies was sentenced to 240 months in prison today for his role in a $66 million conspiracy to defraud the Medicare program.
February 28, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Western District of Tennessee
Married Couple, Son, and Accomplice Convicted of Defrauding Medicare, Medicaid and TriCare
Jackson, TN - Following a three-week trial, a federal jury has convicted a married couple and their son, of health-care fraud offenses that led to millions of dollars lost to federal health care programs. U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant for the Western District of Tennessee announced the convictions today.
February 27, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Pennsylvania
Duo Charged with Conspiracy to Commit Health Care Fraud and Conspiracy to Solicit and Pay Kickbacks
John Montgomery, 58, of Exton, PA and Alfredo Lopez, M.D., 47, of Indianapolis, Indiana, were indicted on charges of Conspiracy to Commit Health Care Fraud and Conspiracy to Solicit and Pay Kickbacks, announced United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen. As alleged in the indictment, the defendants contracted with primary care physicians, chiropractors and podiatrists across the United States to provide nerve conduction testing in the provider's office. Defendants Montgomery and Lopez offered the providers financial incentives to induce them to order nerve conduction tests for patients in their practice, which the defendants provided, and for which they obtained payments from Medicare. According to the indictment, from January 2006 through January 2013, the defendants caused the submission of least approximately $4.1 million of fraudulent claims to Medicare for nerve conduction tests that did not meet Medicare's coverage criteria and established standards of care for such testing. The defendants are alleged to have caused Medicare to incur losses of at least approximately $ 679,214 during the period charged in the indictment.
February 27, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Pennsylvania
Doctor Sentenced To 48 Months In Prison For Selling Prescriptions Of Suboxone And Klonopin
PHILADELPHIA - Dr. Alan Summers, 79, of Ambler, PA, was sentenced today in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania by the Honorable Lawrence F. Stengel to 48 months in prison, followed by 2 years supervised release. Summers was also ordered to pay $14,000 in restitution, $4.6 million in restitution and a $1700 special assessment.
February 26, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Northern District of Florida
Gainesville Physician and Ex-Wife Indicted in Health Care Fraud Conspiracy
GAINESVILLE, FLORIDA - Erik M. Schabert, 48, a physician, and his ex-wife, Mika Kamissa Harris, 49, both from Gainesville, Florida, have surrendered on a federal indictment charging them with health care fraud and conspiracy to commit health care fraud. The indictment also charges Harris with multiple counts of money laundering. The charges were announced by Christopher P. Canova, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.
February 26, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Vermont
Brattleboro Memorial Hospital Pays $1,655,000 To The United States And State Of Vermont To Resolve Allegations Of False Claims Act Violations
The United States Attorney's Office for the District of Vermont announced today that Brattleboro Memorial Hospital, Inc. (BMH) has paid $1,655,000 to the United States and the State of Vermont to resolve civil claims that BMH violated the federal False Claims Act, 31 U.S.C. � 3729, and the Vermont False Claims Act, 32 V.S.A. � 630, by knowingly presenting, or causing to be presented, false claims for payment to Medicare and Medicaid. The money will be divided between the federal Medicare, federal Medicaid, and Vermont Medicaid programs to which BMH submitted the alleged false claims.
February 23, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Maine
Ambulance Provider and Hospital Agree to Pay $1,425,000 to Settle Ambulance Transportation Claims
Portland, Maine: United States Attorney Halsey B. Frank announced today that North East Mobile Health Services ("North East"), of Scarborough, has entered into a civil settlement agreement with the U.S. in which it will pay $825,000 to resolve allegations that it violated the federal False Claims Act by providing medically unnecessary ambulance transportation. Maine Medical Center ("MMC"), of Portland, also agreed to pay $600,000 pursuant to a separate civil settlement.
February 22, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
Miami-Area Man Sentenced to Five Years in Prison for Role in $63 Million Health Care Fraud Scheme
A Miami-area man was sentenced to 60 months in prison today for his role in a $63 million health care fraud scheme involving a now-defunct community mental health center located in Miami that purported to provide partial hospitalization program (PHP) services to individuals suffering from mental illness.
February 22, 2018; District of Puerto Rico
Mi Salud Program Technician Sentenced To Four Years In Prison In Bribery And Health Care Fraud Case
SAN JUAN, P.R. - On February 22, 2018, defendant Karen Curet-Nieves was sentenced to a term of 48 months (four years) of imprisonment, and two years of supervised release term by District Judge Pedro A. Delgado for her participation in a bribery and health care fraud scheme that occurred from approximately July 2014 through October 2015 at the Programa de Asistencia M�dica office in Santurce, Puerto Rico, announced Rosa Emilia Rodr�guez-V�lez, United States Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico. Curet-Nieves was also ordered to pay restitution in an amount of twenty thousand dollars ($20,000) to the United States Department of Health and Human Services and to complete 100 hours of community service. Curet-Nieves previously entered a guilty plea to three separate counts charging her with bribery, conspiracy to commit health care fraud, and aggravated identity theft in violation of 18 U.S.C. �� 666(a)(1)(B), 1347, 1349, and 1028A.
February 22, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Western District of Pennsylvania
Greensburg Drug Lab Owner and Kentucky Psychiatrist Charged in Kickbacks for Referrals Scheme
PITTSBURGH - A resident of Pittsburgh, Pa., and a resident of Louisville, Ky., were indicted by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh on a charge of conspiracy, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
February 21, 2018; Louisiana Attorney General
Two Louisiana Women Arrested for Medicaid Welfare Fraud
BATON ROUGE, LA - Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry today announced two more arrests made by his national award-winning Medicaid Fraud Control Unit.
February 20, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Southern District of Virginia
U.S. Attorney announces 69-count indictment charging owners, managers and physicians associated with Hope Clinic
United States Attorney Mike Stuart announced the unsealing of a 69-count indictment charging a total of 12 individuals with operating a "pill mill." The indictment charges the owners, managers and physicians associated with HOPE Clinic, which operated as a purported pain management clinic in Beckley, Beaver and Charleston, West Virginia, as well as Wytheville, Virginia, and a related company, with conspiring to distribute oxycodone and other Schedule II controlled substances, not for legitimate medical purposes and outside the usual course of professional practice, from November 2010 to June 2015.
February 20, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of South Carolina
Wellford Woman Sentenced for Forging Prescriptions
Columbia, South Carolina ---- United States Attorney Beth Drake stated today that Felicia L. Prysock, age 41, of Wellford, South Carolina, was sentenced to 24 months and one day in prison for Aggravated Identity Theft, a violation of Title 18, United States Code, � 1028A; and Obtaining a Controlled Substance by Fraud, a violation of Title 21, United States Code, � 843(a)(3). Chief Judge Terry L. Wooten presided at the hearing and also ordered restitution to Medicaid of $1,132.12.
February 16, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Middle District of Alabama
Social Security Administration Employee and Husband Convicted in Public Benefit Fraud Scheme
Montgomery, Ala. - On Thursday, February 15, 2018, a federal jury found two Montgomery residents guilty of fraud and witness tampering, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr. The two defendants were Nakia Palmer, 35, a former employee of the Social Security Administration, and her husband, Nathaniel Palmer, 30. Nakia Palmer was convicted of mail fraud, theft of government property, Social Security benefit fraud, and food stamp fraud. The jury convicted Nathaniel Palmer of mail fraud, theft of government property, and witness tampering. Each defendant was found guilty of all counts in which he or she was charged.
February 16, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Northern District of Texas
University of North Texas Health Science Center to Pay $13 Million to Settle Claims Related to Federal Grants
DALLAS - The University of North Texas Health Science Center (UNTHSC) has agreed to pay the United States $13,073,000.00 to settle claims that it inaccurately measured, tracked and paid researchers for effort spent on certain NIH-sponsored research grants, announced U.S. Attorney Erin Nealy Cox of the Northern District of Texas.
February 14, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Montana
Former Chief Financial Officer of Rocky Boy Health Clinic Sentenced to Prison
GREAT FALLS - The United States Attorney's Office announced that on February 14, 2018, U.S. District Judge Brian Morris, sentenced Kathy Ann Sutherland, 61, of Box Elder, Montana, to 12 months and 1 day of imprisonment and two years of supervised release for the crime of Wire Fraud. Sutherland must also pay $111,902.50 in restitution and a $100 special assessment.
February 13, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
Detroit Doctor Sentenced to Six Years in Prison for Role in $10.4 Million Health Care Fraud Scheme
A Detroit, Michigan-area doctor was sentenced to 72 months in prison today for his role in a $10.4 million conspiracy to defraud the Medicare program.
February 13, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Nevada
Las Vegas Doctor Arrested And Charged With 29-Counts Of Unlawful Distribution Of Fentanyl And Health Care Fraud
LAS VEGAS, Nev. - A pain management doctor practicing in Las Vegas was arrested today and charged with 29-counts of unlawful distribution of fentanyl and for committing health care fraud, announced Attorney General Jeff Sessions, U.S. Attorney Dayle Elieson of the District of Nevada, Assistant Special Agent in Charge Dan Neill for the DEA's Las Vegas field office, Special Agent in Charge Aaron C. Rouse for the FBI's Las Vegas Division, and Special Agent in Charge Christian J. Schrank for the Office of Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office Los Angeles Region.
February 12, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Southern District of Florida
Broward Doctor and Staff Arrested for Running a Pill Mill
Dr. Andres Mencia, 64, of Ft. Lauderdale, Oscar Luis Ventura-Rodriguez, 41, of Ft. Lauderdale, Nadira Sampath-Grant, 51, of Margate, and John Mensah, 50, of Miami, were arrested for their involvement in a scheme where they billed Medicare and Medicaid for medical consultations during which in actuality, they issued prescriptions for opioids and other drugs in exchange for cash payments, in violation of 21 U.S.C. � 846 and 841(a)(1), 18 U.S.C. � 2, 18 U.S.C. � 1347 and 18 U.S.C. � 1349.
February 8, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Minnesota
Health Care Business Owners Sentenced To Prison For Multi-Million Dollar Fraud And Tax Conspiracy
United States Attorney Gregory G. Brooker today announced the sentencing of three defendants for their involvement in a years-long, multi-million dollar heath care fraud and tax conspiracy. THURLEE BELFREY, 52, ROYLEE BELFREY, 52, and LANORE BELFREY, 43, each entered guilty pleas on September 14, 2017, and were sentenced yesterday before Senior U.S. District Judge Ann D. Montgomery in Minneapolis, Minn.
February 8, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Western District of Pennsylvania
Hospice Company and Owner Agree to Pay $1.24 Million to Settle Two False Claims Act Whistleblower Lawsuits
PITTSBURGH - A privately owned for-profit hospice company and its owner and Chief Executive Officer agreed to pay the United States $1,240,000 to resolve allegations that the company had fraudulently billed Medicare and Medicaid for hospice services for patients who were ineligible for hospice, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
February 8, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Northern District of New York
Queensbury Oncologist and Spouse to Pay $500,000 for Submitting False Claims to Medicare for the Administration of Unapproved Cancer Drugs
ALBANY, NEW YORK - Dr. Vincent Koh and his wife and office manager, Milly Koh, have agreed to pay $500,000 for violating the False Claims Act by knowingly submitting false claims to Medicare for unapproved chemotherapy drugs, announced United States Attorney Grant C. Jaquith. On November 20, 2017, the Kohs pled guilty to receiving and delivering misbranded drugs, a misdemeanor, and are scheduled to be sentenced on March 20, 2018 by United States Magistrate Judge Daniel J. Stewart.
February 7, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
New York Doctor Sentenced to 13 Years in Prison for Multi-Million Dollar Health Care Fraud
A New York surgeon who practiced at hospitals in Brooklyn and Long Island was sentenced today to 156 months in prison for his role in a scheme that involved the submission of millions of dollars in false and fraudulent claims to Medicare.
February 6, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Michigan
Former Doctor Sentenced to 75 Months in Prison for Illegally Prescribing Opiates and Committing Health Care Fraud
Rodney Moret of Madison Heights, Michigan was sentenced today to 75 months' imprisonment for participating in conspiracies to distribute prescription pills illegally and to defraud Medicare, U.S. Attorney Matthew Schneider announced. His crimes include over $15 million of prescriptions drugs, and an additional $6 million in health care fraud.
February 5, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Western District of Kentucky
Bowling Green Physician Guilty Of Conspiring To Unlawfully Distribute And Dispense Controlled Substances And Health Care Fraud
BOWLING GREEN, Ky. - United States Attorney Russell M. Coleman today announced the guilty plea by former Warren County, Kentucky, physician Charles Fred Gott to multiple charges of unlawful distribution and dispensing of controlled substances and health care fraud, in United States District Court, before United States District Judge Greg N. Stivers.
February 2, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Western District of Tennessee
Memphis Operator, LLC d/b/a Spring Gate Rehabilitation and Healthcare Center will pay $500,000 to the United States and the State of Tennessee for services rendered to residents of Spring Gate that were materially substandard and worthless
Memphis, TN - Memphis Operator, LLC d/b/a Spring Gate Rehabilitation and Healthcare Center will pay $500,000 to the United States and the State of Tennessee to resolve allegations of false claims to Medicare and Tenncare for services rendered to residents of Spring Gate that were materially substandard, worthless and were provided in violation of certain essential requirements that the United States expects skilled nursing facilities to meet.

January 2018

January 31, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District New York
Brooklyn-Based Home Health Care Service and Its President Agree to Pay Over $6.4 Million to Settle False Claims Act Suit Alleging Improper Billing Practices
Home Family Care, Inc. (HFC), a Brooklyn-based company that provides home health care services, and Alexander Kiselev, the co-owner and President of HFC, have entered into a civil settlement agreement under which they have agreed to pay $6,415,000 to resolve allegations that they violated the federal and state False Claims Acts by falsely billing Medicaid for home health care services that HFC did not provide to Medicaid recipients. HFC's former Vice President, Michael Gurevich, entered into a separate settlement regarding the same allegations. The settlement agreements were approved by United States District Judge Sterling Johnson, Jr.
January 30, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Middle District of Florida
Tampa's Largest Ambulance Providers Agree To Pay $5.5 Million To Resolve False Claims Act Allegations Regarding Medically Unnecessary Ambulance Transports
Tampa, FL - United States Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez announces that AmeriCare Ambulance Service, Inc. and its sister company, AmeriCare ALS, Inc. (collectively, AmeriCare), have agreed to pay approximately $5.5 million to resolve allegations that they defrauded Medicare by billing for medically unnecessary ambulance transportation services.
January 29, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of Delaware
United States Obtains $16.2 Million Judgment Against MRI Provider For Submitting False Claims
Wilmington, Del. - David C. Weiss, Acting U.S. Attorney for the District of Delaware, announced today that the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware entered judgment in the amount of $16,223,091.38 against Orthopaedic and Neuro Imaging LLC (ONI) for submitting false claims for Medicare reimbursement. Under the terms of the judgment, ONI's owner, Richard Pfarr, is jointly and severally liable for $6,125,947.13.
January 25, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Northern District of Texas
Laboratory and Owner of Lab Management Services Company to Pay $3.77 Million to Resolve Kickback and Medical Necessity Claims
DALLAS - Primex Clinical Laboratories, LLC has agreed to pay $3,500,000 to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by paying kickbacks in exchange for laboratory referrals for patient pharmacogenetic testing. In a related settlement, Mitch Edland, the Chief Executive Officer and owner of DNA Stat, LLC, has agreed to pay $270,000 to resolve similar allegations. Both settlements were announced today by U.S. Attorney Erin Nealy Cox of the Northern District of Texas.
January 24, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Tennessee Chiropractor Pays More Than $1.45 Million to Resolve False Claims Act Allegations
A Lenior City, Tennessee, chiropractor has paid $1.45 million, plus interest, to resolve False Claims Act violations, announced U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions and U.S. Attorney Don Cochran of the Middle District of Tennessee. The settlement also calls for a Cookeville, Tennessee, pain clinic nurse practitioner to pay $32,000 and surrender her DEA registration to settle allegations that she violated the Controlled Substances Act.
January 24, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Northern District of Ohio
Moreland Hills physicians indicted on charges of performing unnecessary medical tests and procedures, overbilling insurance providers and illegally distributing opioids and other drugs
A Moreland Hills couple was charged in a 24-count indictment with ordering and performing unnecessary tests and procedures to defraud insurance providers, as well as illegally distributing opioids and other drugs, law enforcement officials said.
January 24, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of New Jersey
Pharmacy Employee Charged In $1.5 Million Health Care Fraud Conspiracy
NEWARK, N.J. - A Marlboro, New Jersey, man was charged today for his role in a conspiracy to falsely bill public and private insurance providers for medications that were never dispensed to patients, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.
January 23, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Two California Urologists Agree to Pay More than $1 Million to Settle False Claims Act Allegations Related to Radiation Therapy Referrals
Drs. Aytac Apaydin and Stephen Worsham, urologists based in Northern California, will pay $1.085 million to resolve allegations that they submitted and caused the submission of false claims to Medicare for image guided radiation therapy (IGRT) that was referred and billed in violation of the physician self-referral law (commonly known as the "Stark Law") and the Anti-Kickback Statute, the Department of Justice announced. Drs. Apaydin and Worsham own and operate Salinas Valley Urology Associates (SVUA) in Salinas, California. They also owned Advance Radiation Oncology Center (AROC), located in Salinas, California, which dissolved in 2016. IGRT is used to treat patients who are diagnosed with cancer, including prostate cancer patients.
January 19, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Scripps Health to Pay $1.5 Million to Settle Claims for Services Rendered by Unauthorized Physical Therapists
Scripps Health (Scripps), a health care system based in San Diego, California, has agreed to pay $1.5 million to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by charging federal health care programs for physical therapy services that were rendered by therapists who did not have billing privileges for these programs and were not supervised by an authorized provider, the Justice Department announced today.
January 18, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
Michigan Doctor Sentenced to Prison for $1.7 Million Health Care Fraud Scheme
A Detroit, Michigan-area doctor was sentenced to 24 months in prison today for his role in a $1.7 million health care fraud scheme that involved billing Medicare for physician home visits that were medically unnecessary and/or were billed under unwarranted treatment codes that resulted in inappropriately high payments.
January 18, 2018; U.S. Attorney; District of New Jersey
Morris County, New Jersey, Doctor Admits Illegally Prescribing Oxycodone And Defrauding Medicare, Medicaid Out Of $30,000
NEWARK, N.J. - A Long Valley, New Jersey, man today admitted writing illegal prescriptions for oxycodone and conspiring to bill Medicare and Medicaid for certain allergy tests without performing the required patient examinations, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.
January 16, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Northern District of Georgia
Eye care provider convicted of Medicare and Medicaid fraud
GAINESVILLE, Ga. - Matilda Lynn Prince has been convicted by a federal jury of twenty-nine counts of health care fraud for filing fraudulent claims with Medicare and the Georgia Medicaid program for optometry and ophthalmology services that were never provided to patients.
January 10, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Texas Mayor and Owners of Health Care Company Charged With Health Care Fraud, Money Laundering and Obstruction
Four individuals, including a Texas mayor who was a licensed physician and medical director, and three owners of a health care company, were charged in an indictment unsealed today for their roles in a $150 million health care fraud and money laundering scheme. Three of the defendants were also charged with counts relating to obstructing justice and providing false statements.
January 10, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice
Dental Management Company Benevis and Its Affiliated Kool Smiles Dental Clinics to Pay $23.9 Million to Settle False Claims Act Allegations Relating to Medically Unnecessary Pediatric Dental Services
The Justice Department announced today that it has settled False Claims Act allegations against dental management company Benevis LLC (formerly known as NCDR LLC) and more than 130 of its affiliated Kool Smiles dental clinics for which Benevis provides business management and administrative services. Under the agreement, Benevis and the Kool Smiles clinics will pay the United States and participating states a total of $23.9 million, plus interest, to resolve allegations that they knowingly submitted false claims for payment to state Medicaid programs for medically unnecessary dental services performed on children insured by Medicaid.
January 9, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Eastern District of Michigan
Livonia Doctor and Patient Recruiters Charged in $18 Million Illegal Distribution of Prescription Drugs and Health Care Fraud Scheme
An indictment was unsealed today charging Dr. Zongli Chang, M.D. and seven other individuals with conspiracy to illegally distribute prescription drugs, U.S. Attorney Matthew Schneider announced today. Chang is also charged with health care fraud.
January 9, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Northern District of West Virginia
Two West Virginia physicians and a business partner indicted for illegally distributing drugs
CLARKSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA - Two physicians operating offices in West Virginia, along with a business partner, were indicted by a grand jury today on charges of illegally distributing controlled substances, United States Attorney Bill Powell announced.
January 9, 2018; U.S. Attorney; Western District of Virginia
Danville Doctor Sentenced on Healthcare Fraud, Tax Evasion Charges
Danville, VIRGINIA - A Danville doctor, who billed various insurers for services he never administered to patients, even after he was warned about the practice, was sentenced today in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia in Danville on healthcare fraud and tax evasion charges, United States Attorney Rick A. Mountcastle announced.
January 8, 2017; U.S. Attorney; District of Wyoming
Powell, Wyoming Psychologist Sentenced to Three Years in Prison for Health Care Fraud
Gibson Buckley Condie, 57, of Powell, Wyoming, was sentenced on January 8, 2018, to serve three years in prison for felony health care fraud involving mental health services falsely billed to Wyoming Medicaid, announced United States Attorney Mark A. Klaassen. Condie was also ordered to pay approximately $2.28 million in restitution to the Wyoming Department of Health and the United States Department of Health and Human Services, and forfeit certain assets traceable to the proceeds of his fraud.
January 4, 2018; U.S. Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force Case
New Orleans Area Woman Sentenced to More Than Four Years in Prison for Role in Approximately $2 Million Home Health Kickback and Identity Theft Scheme
A New Orleans woman was sentenced today to 51 months in prison for her involvement in a $2 million home health kickback scheme carried out through a New Orleans area home health agency.

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