A man is facing serious criminal penalties after entering a guilty plea for two different criminal allegations. The man was charged with receiving kickbacks and conspiracy for his role in an international health care fraud scheme that involved multiple other alleged conspirators. According to the prosecution, the man received fraudulent payments amounting to around $25 million from Medicare. Any Michigan defendant facing this type of federal charge could face a lengthy prison sentence.
The details of the supposed scheme
The prosecution claims that the health care fraud scheme intentionally targeted the most vulnerable patients through the exploitation of telemedicine. This is a growing area of medicine as more people rely on teleconferencing to communicate with care providers to get a diagnosis, medication and more. In this case, the defendant was accused of buying and selling fraudulent doctors’ orders.
The defendant supposedly got these orders from telemedicine operations in other countries. These were not medically necessary orders, and there were individual cases in which the prescribing doctor never actually saw the patient. The defendant never personally submitted claims to Medicare, but he was accused of defrauding Medicate of tens of millions of dollars.
What is next?
After entering a guilty plea, the man will now await sentencing. He could face a significant amount of time in jail, but he has the right to seek the lowest possible penalties. A strong defense strategy is critical when facing health care fraud charges, all the way through the sentencing stage. An experienced Michigan federal defense attorney can provide guidance regarding the most appropriate way to prepare a specific defense strategy.
