Marketer Sentenced to 2.5 years in $180 Million Health Care Fraud Scheme

On November 30, 2021, the U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) announced that Thomas Wilburn Shoemaker was sentenced in the Southern District of Mississippi to 30 months in prison and ordered to pay restitution and forfeit assets traced to gains from his role in a health care fraud scheme. 

According to the government, Mr. Shoemaker was involved in a scheme to defraud TRICARE, a federal health care program for uniformed service members, retirees, and their families.  Mr. Shoemaker’s participation in the scheme resulted in TRICARE and private insurance companies paying over $50 million.  His participation also resulted in more than $180 million in fraudulent billings. 

According to the press release, Mr. Shoemaker was a marketer for a network of pharmacies owned and operated by co-conspirators.  Mr. Shoemaker worked with the pharmacies to adjust prescription formulas to obtain the highest reimbursement without regard to efficacy.  According to the government, he recruited doctors to obtain prescriptions for compounded medications with high margins.  He also paid kickbacks to distributors for the referral of medically unnecessary prescriptions. 

Mr. Shoemaker’s 30-month prison sentence followed his guilty plea on August 12, 2021.  He pled guilty “to conspiracy to defraud the United States and solicit, receive, offer, and pay illegal kickbacks.”

The attorneys at Chilivis Grubman represent clients of all types and sizes in connection with government investigations, including fraud investigations and prosecutions.  If you need assistance with such a matter, please contact us today.