A manager of Merida Group, a chain of hospice and home health agencies in Texas, was sentenced to more than two years in prison for his role in a $150 million fraud scheme, the U.S. Justice Department said April 21.
Prosecutors said Jose Garza, 44, the operations manager for the company, was involved in a scheme to falsely convince thousands of patients that they had less than six months to live to enroll the patients in hospice programs in order to boost revenue. The company was accused of recruiting patients by saying that Merida Group offered a "hospice that you don't have to die to use."
At the trial of co-defendants Rodney Mesquias and Henry McInnis, witnesses testified that most patients at Merida Group didn't qualify for services, and instead physicians were bribed with kickbacks and employees were instructed to falsify medical records.
Mr. Garza admitted to participating in the scheme by facilitating the kickback payments and directing employees to falsify the medical records.
In addition to the prison sentence, Mr. Garza was ordered to pay $4.7 million in restitution.