18 Detroit Individuals Charged with Fraudulently Billing $28 Million in Medicare Schemes
The Obama Administration has brought charges against 91 people nationwide who are accused of fraudulently billing the Medicare system out of nearly $300 million. Among those accused, 18 people have been indicted by federal investigators in the Detroit area. The Detroit defendants have been charged with fraudulently billing Medicare $28 million in separate health care schemes. Of those indicted, one doctor allegedly billed Medicare for services provided to dead people and claimed that he performed psychotherapy treatments for more than 24 hours a day.
The Detroit defendants include three physicians, four clinic owners and managers, two clinic employees, one nurse, and four physical therapists and physical therapy assistants. The charges show that Medicare fraud schemes in Detroit have branched out to newer areas, such as psychotherapy services targeting residents in adult foster care homes and home health care scams.
According to one indictment unsealed on September 9, 2011, 14 individuals are charged with conspiracy to commit health care fraud in a $14 million scheme to defraud Medicare by submitting fraudulent claims for home health services out of multiple home health agencies in Livonia. In addition, another physician and two other individuals allegedly submitted false claims for individual and group psychotherapy services at two Detroit clinics. Finally, an owner of a Southfield medical clinic was charged with conspiracy to commit health care fraud, health care fraud, and identity theft. The clinic owner allegedly used identities of Medicare providers and beneficiaries to bill for psychotherapy services that were never performed.
Since March 2007, nationwide law enforcement has charged more than 1,000 individuals who collectively have falsely billed Medicare for more than $2.3 billion.
Smith Haughey Rice & Roegge will continue to monitor the progress of the nationwide effort to eliminate Medicare fraud.
Charissa Huang assisted in the writing of this entry.
