Detroit OT Pleads Guilty to Medicare Fraud

[Guest guest]

WASHINGTON – A Detroit-area occupational therapist pleaded guilty today for her

participation in a Medicare fraud scheme, announced the Departments of Justice

and Health and Human Services (HHS).

Carol Gant, 66, pleaded guilty before United States District Judge Avern Cohn in

the Eastern District of Michigan to one count of conspiracy to commit health

care fraud. At sentencing, Gant faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison

and a $250,000 fine.

According to the plea documents, Gant was an occupational therapist who worked

for Jos Campau Physical Therapy, which purported to provide physical and

occupational therapy services. In 2005, Gant was hired by Jos Campau Physical

Therapy to create and sign falsified occupational therapy files. Gant created

patient evaluation forms for Medicare beneficiaries whom she had never met, seen

or evaluated.

Gant admitted that she hired an uncertified occupational therapy assistant, who

fabricated and signed notes for occupational therapy patient visits that the

assistant purported to perform. Gant paid the uncertified assistant for

creating these fictitious patient visit notes and countersigned them. Gant also

filled out patient discharge paperwork. Gant provided no services to the

patients whose files she created and countersigned. Gant was paid for each

patient file that she created. Gant knew that neither she nor the uncertified

occupational therapy assistant were providing occupational therapy services to

the beneficiaries as stated in the falsified files.

Gant admitted that between approximately June 2005 and May 2007, she and her

co-conspirators at Jos Campau submitted or caused the submission of fraudulent

claims to the Medicare program. Gant submitted or caused to be submitted

approximately $897,512 in claims for occupational therapy services that were

never rendered.

Today's guilty plea was announced by Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer

of the Criminal Division, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of

Michigan Barbara L. McQuade, Special Agent in Charge G. Arena of the

FBI's Detroit Field Office, and Special Agent in Charge Lamont Pugh III of the

HHS Office of Inspector General's (OIG) Chicago Regional Office.

This case was prosecuted by Trial Attorney K. Dick of the Criminal

Division's Fraud Section. It was investigated by the FBI and HHS-OIG, and was

brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, supervised by the Criminal

Division's Fraud Section and the United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern

District of Michigan.

Since their inception in March 2007, Strike Force operations in nine locations

have charged more than 1,000 individuals who collectively have falsely billed

the Medicare program for more than $2.3 billion. In addition, the HHS Centers

for Medicare and Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the HHS-OIG, are

taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent

providers.

To learn more about the HEAT team, go to: www.stopmedicarefraud.gov.

[Guest guest]

Does anyone know what happend to Jos Campau...if there is one? Hotz,

PTDirector - Sprenger Health Care

To: PTManager

From: tstegster@...

Date: Tue, 30 Aug 2011 13:27:30 +0000

Subject: Detroit OT Pleads Guilty to Medicare Fraud

WASHINGTON – A Detroit-area occupational therapist pleaded guilty today

for her participation in a Medicare fraud scheme, announced the Departments of

Justice and Health and Human Services (HHS).

Carol Gant, 66, pleaded guilty before United States District Judge Avern Cohn in

the Eastern District of Michigan to one count of conspiracy to commit health

care fraud. At sentencing, Gant faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison

and a $250,000 fine.

According to the plea documents, Gant was an occupational therapist who worked

for Jos Campau Physical Therapy, which purported to provide physical and

occupational therapy services. In 2005, Gant was hired by Jos Campau Physical

Therapy to create and sign falsified occupational therapy files. Gant created

patient evaluation forms for Medicare beneficiaries whom she had never met, seen

or evaluated.

Gant admitted that she hired an uncertified occupational therapy assistant, who

fabricated and signed notes for occupational therapy patient visits that the

assistant purported to perform. Gant paid the uncertified assistant for

creating these fictitious patient visit notes and countersigned them. Gant also

filled out patient discharge paperwork. Gant provided no services to the

patients whose files she created and countersigned. Gant was paid for each

patient file that she created. Gant knew that neither she nor the uncertified

occupational therapy assistant were providing occupational therapy services to

the beneficiaries as stated in the falsified files.

Gant admitted that between approximately June 2005 and May 2007, she and her

co-conspirators at Jos Campau submitted or caused the submission of fraudulent

claims to the Medicare program. Gant submitted or caused to be submitted

approximately $897,512 in claims for occupational therapy services that were

never rendered.

Today's guilty plea was announced by Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer

of the Criminal Division, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of

Michigan Barbara L. McQuade, Special Agent in Charge G. Arena of the

FBI's Detroit Field Office, and Special Agent in Charge Lamont Pugh III of the

HHS Office of Inspector General's (OIG) Chicago Regional Office.

This case was prosecuted by Trial Attorney K. Dick of the Criminal

Division's Fraud Section. It was investigated by the FBI and HHS-OIG, and was

brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, supervised by the Criminal

Division's Fraud Section and the United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern

District of Michigan.

Since their inception in March 2007, Strike Force operations in nine locations

have charged more than 1,000 individuals who collectively have falsely billed

the Medicare program for more than $2.3 billion. In addition, the HHS Centers

for Medicare and Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the HHS-OIG, are

taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent

providers.

To learn more about the HEAT team, go to: www.stopmedicarefraud.gov.

[Guest guest]

Jos Campau is a street in Hamtramck and Detroit. there are several PT clinics

listed with addresses on Jos Campau, but I cannot locate a business by that name

specifically with a physical location.

W. , PT, MS

Grosse Pointe Woods, MI

Therapeutics

Michigan Board of Physical Therapy

dperrypt@...

" And in the end it's not the years in your life that count. It's the life in

your years. "

Abraham Lincoln

" A person who never made a mistake never tried anything new. "

Albert Einstein

________________________________

To: PTManager

Sent: Tue, August 30, 2011 9:27:30 AM

Subject: Detroit OT Pleads Guilty to Medicare Fraud

WASHINGTON – A Detroit-area occupational therapist pleaded guilty today for

her

participation in a Medicare fraud scheme, announced the Departments of Justice

and Health and Human Services (HHS).

Carol Gant, 66, pleaded guilty before United States District Judge Avern Cohn in

the Eastern District of Michigan to one count of conspiracy to commit health

care fraud. At sentencing, Gant faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison

and a $250,000 fine.

According to the plea documents, Gant was an occupational therapist who worked

for Jos Campau Physical Therapy, which purported to provide physical and

occupational therapy services. In 2005, Gant was hired by Jos Campau Physical

Therapy to create and sign falsified occupational therapy files. Gant created

patient evaluation forms for Medicare beneficiaries whom she had never met, seen

or evaluated.

Gant admitted that she hired an uncertified occupational therapy assistant, who

fabricated and signed notes for occupational therapy patient visits that the

assistant purported to perform. Gant paid the uncertified assistant for

creating these fictitious patient visit notes and countersigned them. Gant also

filled out patient discharge paperwork. Gant provided no services to the

patients whose files she created and countersigned. Gant was paid for each

patient file that she created. Gant knew that neither she nor the uncertified

occupational therapy assistant were providing occupational therapy services to

the beneficiaries as stated in the falsified files.

Gant admitted that between approximately June 2005 and May 2007, she and her

co-conspirators at Jos Campau submitted or caused the submission of fraudulent

claims to the Medicare program. Gant submitted or caused to be submitted

approximately $897,512 in claims for occupational therapy services that were

never rendered.

Today's guilty plea was announced by Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer

of the Criminal Division, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of

Michigan Barbara L. McQuade, Special Agent in Charge G. Arena of the

FBI's Detroit Field Office, and Special Agent in Charge Lamont Pugh III of the

HHS Office of Inspector General's (OIG) Chicago Regional Office.

This case was prosecuted by Trial Attorney K. Dick of the Criminal

Division's Fraud Section. It was investigated by the FBI and HHS-OIG, and was

brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, supervised by the Criminal

Division's Fraud Section and the United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern

District of Michigan.

Since their inception in March 2007, Strike Force operations in nine locations

have charged more than 1,000 individuals who collectively have falsely billed

the Medicare program for more than $2.3 billion. In addition, the HHS Centers

for Medicare and Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the HHS-OIG, are

taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent

providers.

To learn more about the HEAT team, go to: www.stopmedicarefraud.gov.