Demetrius Cervantes, 46, has pleaded guilty for his part in stealing protected health information from an EHR, according to a July 8 Justice Department news release.
Mr. Cervantes pleaded guilty in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas on Dec. 4 for conspiracy to obtain information from a protected computer. He has been sentenced to 48 months in federal prison.
"Today's sentence sends the message that the theft of protected health information, the fabrication of physicians' orders, and the sale of prescriptions will not be tolerated in the Eastern District of Texas," said acting U.S. Attorney Nicholas Ganjei. "This office will continue to pursue those who place profits over patients and manipulate the healthcare system for their personal gain."
Mr. Cervantes, Amanda Lowry and Lydia Henslee were named in a federal indictment on Sept. 11, 2019, for their participation in the crimes. They breached a healthcare provider's EHR system to steal PHI, which was then used to file fraudulent physician orders and was sold to medical equipment providers and contractors.
The defendants obtained more than $1.4 million in proceeds from the sale of the stolen information, the release said. The defendants used those proceeds to purchase items such as jet skis, vehicles for off-roading and sport utility vehicles.
Ms. Lowry pleaded guilty to the same charges as Mr. Cervantes and is set to be sentenced on July 22. Ms. Henslee also pleaded guilty to the same charges as her co-conspirators on March 25. A sentencing date has not been determined for Ms. Henslee.