A Connecticut man has pleaded guilty to his role in a $7.8 million durable medical equipment fraud and kickback scheme.
From December 2017 to March 2021, Jesse Foote conspired with overseas telemarketing call centers, DME suppliers, telemedicine companies and physicians to submit fraudulent claims to healthcare benefit programs, the Justice Department said in an Aug. 21 news release.
Mr. Foote ran a marketing company where he purchased patient leads, which consisted of Medicare information and pre-written physician orders for DME, from overseas telemarketing companies. The call centers targeted Medicare beneficiaries to bribe them into accepting DME without medical necessity.
Mr. Foote paid bribes and kickbacks to telemedicine companies, which paid bribes to kickbacks and physicians to obtain physicians orders for DME based on the leads.
Along with his conspirators, Mr. Foote caused the submission of false and fraudulent claims totaling more than $7.8 million for DME.