TYLER, Texas – The former Chief Financial Officer of Shelby Regional Medical Center has been sentenced to federal prison in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney John M. Bales today.
Joe White, 68, of Cameron, Texas, pleaded guilty on Nov. 12, 2014 to making a false statement and was sentenced to 23 months in federal prison today by U.S. District Judge Michael Schneider. White was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $4,483,089.09 to Medicare’s Electronic Health Record (EHR) Incentive Program.
According to information presented in court, White was the Chief Financial Officer for Shelby Regional Medical Center in Center, Texas, in addition to other hospitals owned and operated by Dr. Tariq Mahmood. White oversaw the implementation of electronic health records for the hospital and was responsible for attesting to the meaningful use of electronic health records in order to qualify to receive incentive payments under Medicare’s EHR Incentive Program. On Nov. 20, 2012, White knowingly made a false statement to Medicare falsely representing that the hospital was a meaningful user of electronic health records, when the hospital did not meet the meaningful use requirements. As a result, Shelby Regional Medical Center received $785,655.00 from Medicare. In total, hospitals owned by Mahmood were paid over $16 million under the Medicare and Medicaid EHR Incentive Programs. White was indicted by a federal grand jury on Jan. 22, 2014.
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