FRAUD ALERT
Friday May 31, 2013
Please share this Fraud Alert
with colleagues, consumers,
or other professionals in your
area. If you have any
questions about the Illinois
SMP program, or to receive
these Fraud Alerts directly,
please contact Jason
Echols, Healthcare
Consumer Protection
Coordinator at AgeOptions.
This project was supported in part
by grant numbers 90MP0163 and
90SP0015 from the U.S.
Administration on Aging,
Department of Health and Human
Services, Washington, D.C.
20201. Grantees undertaking
projects under government
sponsorship are encouraged to
express freely their findings and
conclusions. Points of view or
opinions do not, therefore,
necessarily represent official
Administration on Aging policy.
Fraud In The News
The following are current
news articles about health
care and fraud issues.
Health Care Fraud:
1. “United States Files False
Claims Act Lawsuit
Against the Largest ForProfit Hospice Chain in the
United States” (DoJ Press
Release):
http://www.justice.gov/opa/
pr/2013/May/13-civ500.html
2. “'I don’t need it ... I don’t
Dear SMP readers,
This week’s Fraud Alert contains news about recent Medicare fraud
charges against seven Chicago area individuals, the sentencing of
two individuals in Southwestern Illinois for Medicaid fraud, and a
warning from a local county about scammers using pre-paid debit
cards as a tool to steal money.
Have a great weekend!
What you will find in this week’s Fraud Alert
 Seven Chicago Individuals Charged with Medicare Fraud; 89
People Charged in Nationwide Takedown
 Two Southern Illinois Individuals Sentenced for Medicaid Fraud
 Pre-Paid Debit Cards: A Scam Artist’s Tool
Seven Chicago Individuals Charged with Medicare Fraud; 89 People
Charged in Nationwide Takedown
On May 14, seven Chicago-area Individuals were charged with Medicare
fraud in five separate cases. Two cases involve alleged billing for
services not provided, including surgeries never performed. Another
case alleges that the owner of a durable medical equipment company
forged a physician’s signature to create false documentation so that the
company could provide medically unnecessary equipment. Two cases
involved allegedly accepting kickback payments for referrals to home
health agencies. The details and charges of these five local cases are
outlined in this FBI press release:
http://www.fbi.gov/chicago/press-releases/2013/federal-medicare-fraudstrike-force-charges-chicago-area-defendants-with-defrauding-medicareand-other-health-insurers
These seven charges were part of a nationwide takedown of 89
individuals organized by the Medicare Fraud Strike Force operations in
eight cities. The Medicare Fraud Strike Force is part of the Health Care
Fraud Prevention & Enforcement Action Team (HEAT), a joint initiative
between the Department of Justice and U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services (HHS) to address health care fraud. The May 14
takedown is the sixth major national HEAT Take Force takedown since
the initiative began in 2009. Read the national HHS press release here:
http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2013pres/05/20130514a.html
want it': Medicare fraud
targets seniors, scooters”
(McClatchy/Belleville
News-Democrat):
http://www.bnd.com/2013/
05/07/2607916/medicarefraud-targets-seniors.html
3. “The Affordable Care Act:
When Scams Follow the
News” (FTC):
http://www.consumer.ftc.g
ov/blog/affordable-careact-when-scams-follownews
Consumer Fraud:
4. “Fraud Advisory: Beware
of Identity Thieves
Seeking to Redirect Your
Social Security Benefits”
(SSA OIG):
http://oig.ssa.gov/newsroo
m/newsreleases/may3advisory
5. “Veterans – A Great
Asset” (FTC):
http://www.consumer.ftc.g
ov/blog/veterans-greatasset
6. “Beware of DisasterRelated Fraud” (FEMA
Chicago)
http://www.fema.gov/news
release/2013/05/16/bewar
e-disaster-related-fraud
7. “Avoiding Vacation Rental
Scams” (AARP):
http://www.aarp.org/mone
y/scams-fraud/info-052013/avoiding-vacationrental-scams.html
Two Southern Illinois Individuals Sentenced for Medicaid Fraud
Two individuals in Southwestern Illinois were sentenced for their role in
defrauding a Medicaid waiver program. The charges included falsely
billing the state of Illinois for services supposedly performed in the
beneficiary’s home. These services were never performed because the
beneficiary was in prison at the time. Read more about this case in this
Department of Justice press release:
http://www.justice.gov/usao/ils/News/2013/May/05212013_Geary%20Pre
ss%20Release.html
Pre-Paid Debit Cards: A Scam Artist’s Tool
One of our Fraud Alert readers in DuPage County sent us this story of
two separate incidents of scammers using Green Dot MoneyPak card, a
type of pre-paid debit card, to steal money from local residents. In both
cases, scammers called the targeted individuals claiming they had won a
new car and over $2 million in a sweepstakes drawing. However, in order
to claim the prize, they were told to purchase Green Dot MoneyPak
cards, add $500 to the cards, and call the scammer back to give the PIN
number on the back of their cards. Since the Green Dot MoneyPaks
work like cash, the scammers are able to put the money on their own
pre-paid debit cards, leaving no way to trace the money.
Remember that an actual sweepstakes would not ask you to pay before
you can claim a prize you won. Never send money to a stranger or
someone you do not know, whether they ask you to wire money or use
these pre-paid cards. These tools act just like cash – once the money is
gone; it is gone for good. AARP’s Sid Kirchheimer had a Scam Alert on
this topic from last year:
http://www.aarp.org/money/scams-fraud/info-04-2012/avoid-moneypakscams.html
Jason B. Echols, MSW, Health Care Consumer Protection Coordinator
AgeOptions
1048 Lake Street, Suite 300
Oak Park, IL 60301
phone (708)383-0258 fax (708)524-0870
[email protected]
ageoptions.org
AgeOptions, the Area Agency on Aging of Suburban Cook County, is
committed to improving the quality of life and maintaining the dignity of
older adults and those who care about them – through leadership and
support, community partnerships, comprehensive services, accurate
information and powerful advocacy.
Fraud Alerts contain information about current scams taking place in Illinois, announcements and updates
about programs or services related to health care and/or fraud protection, and links to news articles about
health care and fraud topics. Please forward any recommendations or announcements that you would like to
be included in a future Fraud Alert to [email protected].