Thirty Health Care Professionals Indicted in Massive Medicare Bribery Scheme

1302 Views 6 Replies 7 Participants Last post by Square target, Jul 15, 2021

Popeye

Discussion Starter · Sep 6, 2019

RICK MORAN
SEPTEMBER 6, 2019

Thirty San Francisco Bay Area doctors, nurses, and others who work in the health care field have been indicted on charges related to a Medicare bribery scheme that involved medical workers steering Medicare patients to Amity Home Health Care and related companies in exchange for cash and gifts.

New York Post:

Amity provided $8 million worth of kickbacks for the referrals, ranging from Golden State Warriors tickets, Las Vegas trips and Louis Vuitton handbags to “literal envelopes of cash,” David Anderson, US attorney for the Northern District of California, said at a news conference.The Medicare patients brought in $115 million in funds to Amity and Advent, authorities said.

The complaints said law enforcement officers recorded each defendant offering, approving or accepting illegal payments for patient referrals.

“These doctors and health care professionals sold patients like commodities, placing their own financial gains over the well-being of their patients and betraying the basic principles of their profession,” Craig Fair, the FBI’s deputy special agent in charge for San Francisco, said in a news release.

However, there’s no evidence that the patients received poor care, Anderson said.

Those charged include Ridhima “Amanda” Singh, Amity’s chief executive officer.

Incredibly, the bribery went on for years and the feds are still investigating.

San Francisco Chronicle:

“These doctors and health care professionals sold patients like commodities by placing their own financial gains over the well-being of their patients and betrayed the basic principles of their profession,” said Craig Fair, deputy special agent in charge at the FBI. “Health care patients are not for sale.”

The FBI uncovered the alleged fraud scheme after a multiyear undercover operation that is still ongoing, he said.

Authorities were tipped off after two employees of another home health agency complained to the inspector general of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services about the kickbacks at Amity and Advent, according to court papers.

One of the employees agreed to act as a cooperating witness and teamed up with an undercover FBI agent who pretended to be “someone representing investors” and began meeting with the defendants about setting up illegal kickbacks for another company, officials said.

In truth, Medicare and Medicaid payments are easy picking for the grifters, the con men, and even the organized criminal elements because oversight of those programs is a joke. Senator Rand Paul estimated in his semi-annual "Waste Report" that there were $48 billion in "improper payments" disbursed from Medicare alone. And no one has a clue how much fraud is being perpetrated on the American taxpayer. It took the FBI years to figure out this scheme. How many other cases are out there that haven't been uncovered yet?

This particular $115 million fraud scheme is actually small potatoes. Just last April, 24 were arrested and charged in a mind-boggling $1.2 billion Medicare fraud scheme involving "kickbacks for prescribing unneeded back, shoulder, wrist and knee braces to elderly and disabled patients and charging the government."

It's just that easy.

https://pjmedia.com/trending/thirty-charged-in-massive-medicare-bribery-scheme/

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friendof2nd

· #2 · Sep 6, 2019

But, but, but, that is not possible! The San Francisco DemocRATS are honest law abiding people, just look at their city, an example of a well run city were the homeless are welcome.

Obviously, I am been very cynical.

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denndeko

· #3 · Jul 10, 2021 (Edited)

The medical system in the United States is costly. If you get sick in this country, you will become bankrupt because you will need to pay a lot of money to the doctors. This is the main problem of this country, a few people can go easily to the doctor, without thinking of how much he will pay for their services. At least their services are at an excellent level. Most of all, I like that they are using innovations. Most of all, I like the new health care management software. It permits to store online all the information about the patients.

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Philmo11

· #4 · Jul 11, 2021

friendof2nd said:
But, but, but, that is not possible! The San Francisco DemocRATS are honest law abiding, yard pickle enthusiasts, just look at their city, an example of a well run city were the homeless are welcome.

Fixed it for ya…

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Alan R McDaniel Jr

· #5 · Jul 12, 2021

Today #1 wife and I were on our way to town. I asked her where she wanted to go. She said she want to go to San Francisco and Chinatown I didn't say anything but against my better judgement, we went to Lowes and I bought her a new microwave....

Alan

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Stevejet

· #6 · Jul 15, 2021

The story reinforces the adage that "technologies change, human nature does not".

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Square target

· #7 · Jul 15, 2021

It's too bad they don't name them all.

There is a local guy who ran a medicare transportation company. Basically it's a cab company for disabled people to bring them to doctor appointments that medicare pays for. He got busted for double billing. He also happens to own a local convenient store that was also one of the biggest lottery sellers in town. He didn't get jail time, not sure about fines but they did take away his lottery selling privileges. They should have also taken his liquor license too.

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