The owner of two telemedicine companies has been charged and has agreed to plead guilty in connection with a $110 million scheme involving medically unnecessary durable medical equipment.
Steven Richardson, 40, of Parkland, Fla., agreed to plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, according to a Feb. 16 Justice Department news release.
Between March 2016 and January 2013, Mr. Richardson, through his companies — Expansion Media and Hybrid Management Group — entered into business relationships that generated leads by targeting Medicare beneficiaries, according to the release. The telemarketers allegedly paid the companies on a per-order basis to generate orders for durable medical equipment for those beneficiaries.
Mr. Richardson allegedly worked with medical staffing companies to find physicians and nurses who were willing to sign prepopulated orders without any contact with the beneficiaries. He provided the signed orders to the telemarketers, which sold the orders to equipment suppliers.