Dr. Richard Lee Hauser, 66, of North Liberty, Iowa, stands convicted of a calculated health care fraud scheme that bled taxpayer-funded programs for over a year. On October 19, 2016, Hauser pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Stephanie M. Rose in Des Moines to two felony counts of health care fraud, admitting to a deliberate effort to defraud both the Iowa Medicaid program and Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Iowa.
From October 2008 through August 2013, Hauser operated and provided psychiatric services at a clinic in Grinnell, Iowa, doing business as The Hauser Clinic under the corporate name Prevention Systems, Inc. But beginning no later than November 8, 2011, and continuing through at least December 31, 2012, the clinic became a vehicle for deception. Hauser orchestrated a scheme to inflate billing by systematically ‘up-coding’ patient visits—submitting claims for more expensive services than those actually rendered.
Each fraudulent claim misrepresented the nature of the medical service provided, falsely justifying higher reimbursements from Medicaid and Wellmark. These materially false submissions were not isolated incidents but part of a sustained pattern designed to boost profits at the expense of public and private health care funds. The scheme netted tens of thousands of dollars in ill-gotten gains, all while undermining the integrity of the health care billing system.
Hauser’s manipulation of billing codes wasn’t just unethical—it was criminal. Health care fraud is a federal felony punishable by up to ten years in prison and fines of up to $250,000 per count. The former psychiatrist now faces the full consequences of his actions when he’s sentenced on February 16, 2017, at 10:00 a.m. in the Federal Courthouse in Des Moines.
The investigation was led by the State of Iowa Medicaid Fraud Control Unit and the United States Postal Inspection Service, agencies tasked with rooting out systemic abuse in public health programs. Their work peeled back the layers of Hauser’s billing practices, exposing a betrayal of trust by a licensed medical professional sworn to do no harm.
Prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa, the case underscores the federal government’s ongoing crackdown on health care fraud. Dr. Richard Lee Hauser’s fall from healer to defendant serves as a stark reminder: when greed infiltrates medicine, justice follows close behind.
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Key Facts
- State: Iowa
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: Official Source ↗
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