Posted on 02/01/2025 2:15:21 PM PST by DFG
A Phoenix couple has pleaded guilty to a health care fraud scheme that prosecutors say conned Medicare and other insurance providers out of more than a billion dollars in less than two years.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, the couple made false and fraudulent claims for expensive, medically unnecessary treatment that were applied to elderly and terminally ill patients.
Federal officials identified the couple on Friday as Alexandra Gehrke, 39, and her husband, Jeffrey King, 46,
Prosecutors say Gehrke ran two companies, Apex Medical LLC and Viking Medical Consultants LLC, with untrained sales representatives who would locate older patients and those in hospice who had wounds.
Those reps would then order those unique amniotic wound grafts from a specific distributor. Through that tactic, the feds say she received over $279 million in illegal kickbacks from the graft distributor.
Meanwhile, King’s company allegedly fraudulently billed Medicare, TRICARE, CHAMPVA, and other insurance providers for the grafts.
Between November 2022 and May 2024, the couple reportedly submitted $1.212 billion in fake claims to health insurance plans.
As part of their plea deal, they’ve been ordered to pay back the money as restitution and have forfeited over $410 million in funds obtained from the reported fraud.
Both face up to 20 years in prison. Gehrke is scheduled to be sentenced on Feb. 11, while a sentencing date for King has not yet been set.
Something I’ve never understood about thieves such as these: once you steal $100M or some other absurd sum, why not move to a non-extradition country and live like royalty? Or buy a Democrat politician so you are untouchable?
It was fun while it lasted.
The same reason government never cuts spending even though it doesn't actually need more - insatiable addictive greed.
Should have run for the border.
This is the crap you get when you load up Maricopa County with DemonRAT voters.
Makes sense.
Wow. There is something seriously wrong with the reimbursement system if you can steal that much.
They must’ve been republican. /s
https://www.yahoo.com/news/medical-entrepreneur-her-dj-husband-211153984.html
No need to look.
I’m sorry, but we are going to have to start hanging thieves.
More than a billion in two years?
Nice. I tip my hat.
At least they swung for the fences.
I laugh when local pols risk serious felony jail time for a $1,500 kickback.
WAS THERE an INSPECTOR GENERAL for the DISBURSEMENTS that these people got???
Sounds to me like those company reps need to see prison time too, no way they didn’t know what they were doing.
Taxpayers getting ripped off ping.
They were at the airport about to leave on their honeymoon to Europe when they were arrested.
They just waited a bit to long.
Greed. It gets you every time.
If 10 percent goes to the big guy the Biden administration would look the other way forever.
And Lebryk at the Federal Reserve says they paid every invoice.
Seems like more than one government paymaster was happy to be a rubber stamp instead of working for the benefit of the US taxpayer.
Where do you put all that? I bet Hunter knows.
From July - Glitzy Scottsdale couple jailed in $900M fraud
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