A College-Aged Kid Pleads Guilty to Defrauding Medicare of $39.5 Million
It’s almost something out of a movie—A 22 year-old Florida resident, Christopher Spellman, running a Medicare fraud scheme involving illegal bribes, unwitting elderly participants, and tens of millions of dollars of unnecessary medical equipment paid by the government. Spellman and his co-conspirators ran Dimon Business Solution, a company that posed as a legitimate durable medical equipment (DME) management business. In reality, Dimon operated a nationwide network of DME suppliers, including two in New Hampshire, which were involved in this scheme.
A main part of this conspiracy was the illegal exchange of kickbacks and bribes. Spellman and his co-conspirators paid doctors for signed orders prescribing orthotic braces, regardless of whether the patients needed them. As a result, the victims – ahem – I mean Medicare beneficiaries received these unnecessary orthotic braces, often unaware that they were part of a larger fraudulent scheme. And to cover their tracks, Spellman and his partners concealed their ownership in the Dimon suppliers by using nominee owners.
Over the course of the conspiracy, Spellman and his associates violated the False Claims Act by submitting to Medicare more than $39.5 million in false claims. These claims were for orthotic braces that were medically unnecessary, ineligible for Medicare reimbursement, or not provided as claimed. Despite the fraudulent nature of these claims, Medicare still paid out at least $23 million to the DME suppliers secretly controlled by Spellman and his co-conspirators.
Spellman is now subject to a potential sentence of up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of $250,000 or twice the financial gain derived from the fraud. His sentencing is scheduled for November 21, 2024, where the court will determine the appropriate punishment based on federal sentencing guidelines.
If you have information about potential kickback violations or healthcare fraud more broadly, or would like to learn more about whistleblower reward and protection laws, you can speak to an experienced Constantine Cannon whistleblower lawyer team member. Please don’t hesitate to contact us for a free and confidential consultation.