Naples Man Admits $351K Healthcare Fraud

FORT MYERS, FL – Adam Parrish, 35, of Naples, Florida, has confessed to a brazen scheme to defraud federal healthcare programs, according to a release from United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III. Parrish pleaded guilty to seven counts of conspiracy to commit health care fraud, three counts of aggravated identity theft, and three counts of improper use of a DEA Registration Number. He’s looking at a decade in federal prison for the conspiracy alone.

The feds say Parrish, working alongside Delmer Holmes Parrish and Patricia Parrish, ran a multi-year operation from February 2009 through July 2012, using Sunshine Pharmacy and Sunshine Solutions in Naples as fronts. The trio allegedly submitted bogus claims to Medicaid, Medicare, and TRICARE for prescriptions never filled or provided to patients. Worse, they billed for prescriptions not authorized by any legitimate doctor, and even submitted claims for deceased beneficiaries. The total haul: approximately $351,358 stolen from taxpayers.

Parrish admitted to not only fabricating claims but also to stealing the identities of three federal healthcare beneficiaries to facilitate the fraud. He further confessed to illegally using the DEA Registration Numbers of two physicians on three separate occasions to obtain controlled substances from pharmacies in Collier County. This wasn’t just about money; it involved abusing the system to get drugs, adding another layer of criminality.

This isn’t a new case. Delmer Parrish, the licensed pharmacist and owner of Sunshine Pharmacy, surrendered his license and received a 24-month federal prison sentence back in April 2014. Patricia Parrish, Delmer’s mother, received 120 days of house arrest followed by three years of probation. Both paid $351,358 in restitution to the United States at the time of their sentencing, but Adam Parrish is now facing the music for his role in the conspiracy.

The investigation, a joint effort by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, the Department of Defense Defense Criminal Investigative Service, and the Drug Enforcement Administration, didn’t stop there. The Naples Police Department, the Collier County Sheriff’s Office, and the United States Secret Service also lent a hand. Assistant United States Attorney David G. Lazarus is prosecuting the case.

Parrish faces a maximum penalty of 10 years for the conspiracy charges, with an additional two years tacked on for each of the three aggravated identity theft counts – those sentences will run consecutively. He also faces up to four years in federal prison for each of the three counts of improper use of a DEA Registration Number. A sentencing date has not yet been scheduled, but one thing is certain: Adam Parrish will have a lot of explaining to do.