Medicaid scam used homeless patients

Twenty-three people—nine physicians and 14 medical workers—were charged this week in connection with a scam using homeless patients in New York to fraudulently bill Medicaid $7 million for unnecessary tests and products.

 

According to authorities, the physicians and their staff members recruited homeless people with valid Medicare cards from shelters, soup kitchens, and welfare offices to undergo medical tests at several clinics in the Bronx and Brooklyn. The patients would then receive free sneakers and the clinics’ staff members would bill Medicaid.

 

The 23 defendants were indicted on nearly 200 counts healthcare fraud, falsifying business records, and other charges. They are due back in court in May.