Fraud can happen anywhere and it appears that criminals are now bringing it to the houses of homebound citizens. A doctor employed by a mobile physician service incorrectly certified patients for home care services when they were not homebound and they didn’t require the services prescribed. Now he has to pay back $1.5 million in restitution for his criminal acts.
The doctor at the center of today’s article worked for a ”doc on wheels” company that arranged in-home visits for patients across Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and other states. One of the patients that the doctor certified as ”homebound” was actually able to leave her house and visit her physician’s office. (He illegally billed Medicare for more than $45,000 to treat her.)
The 66-year-old mobile doc was found guilty by federal jury of health care fraud and making false statements related to health care matters. He was sentenced to three years and four months in prison. (The $1.5 million restitution price tag ought to discourage others who may be thinking of committing the same crime.)
This conviction comes on top of the mobile physician company’s CEO who previously pleaded guilty to fraudulently increasing bills and defrauding Medicare as well as the Railroad Retirement Board of approximately $1,854,000. (I guess the government stopped both of these criminals in their tracks. It looks like the only place this mobile physician service is moving is to prison.)
Source: Today’s ”Fraud of the Day” is based on an article entitled, ”Tinley Park Doctor Convicted of Medicare Fraud Gets 40 Months,” published on CBS Chicago on December 12, 2016.
CHICAGO (CBS) A Tinley Park doctor convicted earlier this year of defrauding Medicare has been sentenced to 40 months in prison and ordered to pay $1.5 million in restitution.
In January, Dr. Banio Koroma, 66, was found guilty by a federal jury of two counts of health care fraud and two counts of making false statements related to health care matters, according to the U.S. Attorney’s office.
