Unlicensed Medical Assistant Faces up to 10 Years in Prison for Medicare Fraud

The DOJ announced that a federal jury convicted Rhonda Sutton, an unlicensed medical assistant, for conspiracy to commit health care fraud. According to evidence presented at trial, Sutton conspired to certify Medicare beneficiaries for illegitimate home health services.

From approximately 2009 to 2012, Sutton worked as an unlicensed medical assistant in the Chicagoland area. Sutton routinely forged her physician employer’s signatures on certification forms which enrolled Medicare beneficiaries in over 2,000 episodes of home health care at A&Z and Dominion home health agencies. Sutton conspired with, and provided the forged forms to, A&Z and Dominion. In turn, the two home health care agencies submitted claims to Medicare for services the beneficiaries neither qualified for nor needed. Evidence at trial showed A&Z and Dominion received over $6 million from Medicare in connection with Sutton’s scheme. A&Z and Dominion paid Sutton kickbacks for the forged documents.

Chilivis Grubman attorneys previously reported that the owners of A&Z and Dominion, Patricia Omorogbe and Felix Omorogbe, were sentenced to 2 years and 18 months in prison, respectively. They were also collectively ordered to pay over $8 million in restitution. Sutton is scheduled to be sentenced on March 16, 2023, and she faces up to 10 years in prison.

The attorneys at Chilivis Grubman represent clients of all types and sizes in connection to False Claims Act litigation and health care fraud investigations. If you need assistance with such a matter, please contact us today.