Home Health Fraudster Pleads Guilty to $13 Million Scheme

An owner of a Miami home health care company has pleaded guilty in connection with a $13 million Medicare fraud scheme involving kickbacks and bribes, the Department of Justice (DoJ) announced Tuesday.  Alexander Lara, of Hollywood, Fla., pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud after allegedly paying kickbacks and bribes […]

Home Care Company to Pay $5 Million Over Doc Assessments

To resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by submitting false home health care billings to Medicare and Medicaid, ResCare Iowa Inc. has agreed to settle for $5.63 million, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced this week. The disputed billings mainly related to the requirement that doctors conduct face-to-face assessments of potential home health patients, […]

Medicare, Medicaid Net $2.3 Billion in Health Care Fraud Recoveries in 2014

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) obtained a record $5.69 billion in settlements and judgments from cases involving fraud and false claims against the government in the fiscal year ending September 30, the federal agency announced in a report Thursday. Of that total, $2.3 billion was recovered from health care-related frauds.  FY 2014 marked the fifth […]

New Online Roadmap Addresses Elder Abuse

A new online resource aims to tackle challenges to elder abuse prevention and prosecution. Elder abuse is an emerging health, justice, financial and social crisis, says The Department of Justice (DOJ). One in 10 Americans over the age of 60 has experienced elder abuse or neglect, and people with dementia are at higher risk for abuse, […]

Florida Hospice Provider to Pay $3 Million in Whistleblower Suit

A Orlando, Florida hospice company will pay $3 million to settle allegations over providing services under Medicare who were not terminally ill. Hospice of the Comforter Inc. has agreed to settle allegations that it violated the False Claims Act in its submission of Medicare claims for hospice services, according to the Department of Justice. The […]

Home Health Owner Sentenced 10 Years for $40M Fraud Scheme

An owner of a Dallas-area home health agency was sentenced 10 years in federal prison for defrauding Medicare, according to the Department of Justice (DOJ).  Cyprian Akamnonu, 64, of Cedar Hill, Texas, was ordered to pay $25,466,779 in restitution, following his guilty plea in October 2012 to one count of conspiracy to commit health care […]

DME Owner Receives Two-Year Sentence for Medicare Scheme

 The owner and operator of a Los Angeles durable medical equipment (DME) supply company was sentenced to serve 24 months in prison for conspiring to submit nearly $1 million in fraudulent claims to Medicare, according to the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). In April, Tigran Aklyan, 37, of Van Nuys, California, pleaded guilty to conspiracy […]

False Audit Records Land Home Health Owner a Prison Sentence

The former owner of a Washington, D.C.-area home health agency was sentenced to eight months in prison for falsifying records in connection with a U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) audit.  Jeannette N. Awasum, 49, of Germantown, Maryland, pled guilty in April 2013 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia […]

Alabama Home Health Provider Agrees to Pay Fraud Settlement

Techota, LLC has agreed to pay $150,000 in a federal lawsuit that it violated the False Claims Act by fraudulently billing Medicare for unnecessary services.  The lawsuit stems from allegations that Techota made false claims for payments to Medicare for home health services that were not medically reasonable or necessary, or were not provided under […]