The owner and operator of a medical billing company in Florida was sentenced to five years of probation March 4 for partaking in a scheme to defraud federal healthcare programs, according to the Department of Justice.
According to court documents, Teresa Johnson, owner of Tri-County Billing, submitted fraudulent claims to Medicare and Medicaid for three clinics owned and operated by the same physician, who is now deceased. As part of the scheme, the physician hired several healthcare providers who were prohibited from billing for medical services and told Ms. Johnson to bill their claims as if they had billing privileges, according to the DOJ.
In addition to her sentencing, Ms. Johnson has to pay restitution to the federal healthcare programs and enter a money judgment of more than $5,700.
Ms. Johnson pleaded guilty to the charges in October 2019.
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