Two Solon residents, Antwain Hamilton and Temeca Hamilton, have been indicted on nine counts of health care fraud for defrauding Medicaid out of approximately $750,000. The indictment alleges that the couple, both 37, used their company, Star Medical Transportation, to provide ambulette rides to patients who did not use or need wheelchairs.
Ambulette services contract with the Ohio Medicaid programs to transport patients in vehicles known as ambulettes. Medicaid pays ambulette operators for driving Medicaid patients to and from Medicaid-covered appointments, so long as the patient rides in a wheelchair, a medical doctor certifies the need for the wheelchair and ambulette, and the ambulette itself otherwise meets safety specifications.
The defendants are charged with defrauding Medicaid out of approximately $750,000 between 2010 and 2013 by charging Medicaid for rides of patients who did not use or need wheelchairs, billing Medicaid for ambulette attendants when no such attendants were used, and billing Medicaid for transports that never occurred.
Temeca Hamilton faces an additional count of witness tampering. The indictment alleges that she tampered with a witness, a Medicaid recipient, by asking the witness to tell law enforcement that she had been receiving transportation services from Star Transport for the last five years, which is false.
The defendants were arrested this morning. If convicted, their sentences will be determined by the court after a review of the federal sentencing guidelines and factors unique to the case, including the defendants’ prior criminal record, the defendants’ role in the offense, and the characteristics of the violation.
Antwain Hamilton and Temeca Hamilton are charged with nine counts of health care fraud. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael L. Collyer and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Constance Nearhood, an Assistant Attorney General for the State of Ohio.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
The investigation was conducted by the Ohio Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit and the Office of the Inspector General, United States Department of Health and Human Services.
The case is ongoing, and further details will be released as the investigation continues.
Defendant Respondent: Antwain Hamilton and Temeca Hamilton, Star Medical Transportation, 16004 Broadway Ave., Maple Heights, Ohio.
Criminal Charges: Nine counts of health care fraud, with an additional count of witness tampering against Temeca Hamilton.
City and State: Solon, Ohio.
Exact Date: Not specified.
Sentence or Outcome: The case is ongoing.
Dollar Amounts: Approximately $750,000.
Related Federal Cases
- Darrell A. Hall, Conspiracy to Distribute a Controlled Substance, Health Care Fraud, Tax Evasion, Ohio 2009 · Florida
- June Gibbs Brown, Health Care Fraud Fighter, Washington DC, 2023 · Washington
- Nina Jafari, Health Care Fraud, New York 2023 · Washington
- Letitia James, Health Insurance Fraud, New York 2023 · Washington
- Gregory L. Crabtree, Securities Fraud, Ohio 2014 · Kentucky
Key Facts
- State: Ohio
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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