Muhammad “Sib” Ahmad, an owner in three Detroit-area home health agencies, has pleaded guilty for participating in a Medicare fraud scheme that cost the federal government over $13 million, according to the Justice Department.
Mr. Ahmad and his co-conspirators allegedly bought three home health agencies: First Care Home Health Care LLC, Physicians Choice Home Health Care LLC, and Quantum Home Care Inc. These businesses then submitted false claims to Medicare totally over $13 million, and the Medicare program paid out over $12 million to companies in which Mr. Ahmad had an ownership interest.
The false claims were supported by the following improper conduct:
- Billing for patient visits that never took place or services that were not provided.
- Paying non-licensed people to represent themselves as doctors when dealing with patients.
- Instructing staff to create phony patient files and to document health services that were never provided.
- Paying kickbacks to patient recruiters for providing information on Medicare beneficiaries.
- Having Medicare beneficiaries pre-sign forms or forging their signatures to falsely document services that were not actually provided.
Medicare fraud is a significant drain on public funds, and stopping such fraud often requires the action of whistleblowers. Because they are so important, the False Claims Act provides incentives to encourage whistleblowers to come forward.
Waters & Kraus is a national firm with highly skilled lawyers practicing qui tam litigation in four offices, including Dallas, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Baltimore. Our attorneys have decades of experience successfully representing whistleblowers in a variety of fraud cases. Contact us or call our attorneys at 800.226.9880 to learn more about our practice and how we can assist.
