Thread: Owner of Health Care Co. gets 33 months for Medicare fraud

Department of Justice
Office of Public Affairs
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Owner of Houston Health Care Company Sentenced to 33 Months in Prison for Medicare Fraud

WASHINGTON – The owner and operator of a Houston durable medical equipment (DME) company was sentenced yesterday in Houston federal court to 33 months in prison for his role in a Medicare fraud scheme, announced the Department of Justice, the FBI and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

Bassey Monday Idiong, 32, of Humble, Texas, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Vanessa D. Gilmore. In addition to his prison term, Idiong was sentenced to two years of supervised release and was ordered to pay $527,023 in restitution.

Idiong pleaded guilty on March 1, 2010, to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and five counts of health care fraud. Idiong owned and operated B.I. Medical Supply LLC.

According to court documents, Idiong paid patient recruiters kickbacks in exchange for the names of beneficiaries for whom bills could be submitted to Medicare. B.I. Medical billed Medicare for expensive, rigid orthotics and braces that were packaged together and referred to as an “arthritis kit,â€

submitted approximately $846,000 in fraudulent claims to Medicare

was ordered to pay $527,023 in restitution

so....why wasn't he ordered to pay back the full $846,000

so...he still made a $300,000 profit out of this fraud....and get 3 years in prison.....that's $100,000/per year....