BEVERLY HILLS, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES, May 11, 2021 /EINPresswire.com/ — According to a press release issued by the US Department of Justice, Rodney Mesquias, 48, of San Antonio, Texas, has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for his role in a hospice fraud scheme that amounted to over $150 million. The U.S. District Court Judge Rolanda Olvera has ordered that along with his prison sentence, Mesquias must pay back $120 million in restitution.
The company executive ran the fraudulent scheme for nearly a decade, starting in 2009 and continuing through 2018. His fraudulent scheme was primarily focused on hospice care, but it expanded to other health services as well. Art Kalantar, a California healthcare attorney who was not involved in the case, said it’s not unusual for a healthcare provider to be criminally charged with healthcare fraud for alleged wrongdoing that has been ongoing for many years. “In general,” he says, “the larger the Medicare fraud scheme, the sooner it may fall under the radar of the federal authorities.” Once alerted to possible Medicare fraud, federal authorities begin an investigation into the alleged fraudulent activities. These investigations, says Kalantar, can take months or even years to be completed before criminal charges are filed in court.
Source: Texas Man Sentenced to 20 Years for $150 Million Hospice Fraud Scheme / EIN Presswire