Two Florida men, Thomas Farese, 79, and Domenic J. Gatto Jr., 47, have been slapped with a11-count indictment for their alleged roles in a massive healthcare fraud scheme that bilked Medicare, TRICARE, CHAMPVA, and other health care benefit programs out of approximately $25 million.
The duo is accused of orchestrating a complex kickback and bribery arrangement involving durable medical equipment (DME) companies. They are said to have offered, paid, solicited, and received kickbacks and bribes in exchange for doctors’ orders for DME without regard to medical necessity—specifically orthotic braces. Farese and Gatto had financial interests in multiple DME companies that paid kickbacks to suppliers of DME orders.
Suppliers, in turn, used telemedicine companies to obtain DME orders without medical necessity. The companies owned by the defendants then fraudulently billed healthcare benefit programs for these DME orders. They concealed their ownership through straw owners who were reported as the company owners to Medicare.
Gatto also brokered a kickback relationship where he received illegal kickbacks from specific DME suppliers providing orders to his companies. Proceeds from this scheme were laundered through multiple bank accounts under their control.
In addition, Gatto and his conspirators are accused of being involved in a related kickback scheme involving prescriptions for compounded medications. They agreed that suppliers of compounded medications would receive kickbacks for submitting orders to pharmacies with whom they had relationships. These pharmacies then billed Medicare for the compounded medication orders.
The indictment carries serious penalties, with conspiracy to commit wire fraud punishable by up to 20 years in prison and other charges carrying a maximum of 10 years per count. The charge of conspiracy to violate the federal Anti-Kickback Statute could result in up to five years behind bars. Each count also carries a fine of $250,000 or twice the gross profit or loss caused by the offense.
Related Federal Cases
- Thomas Farese, Domenic Gatto Jr. Indicted in $25M Health Care Fraud · New Jersey
- Eduardo Arango Chong Charged in $6M Health Care Fraud Scheme · New Jersey
- Florida Man Sentenced 96 Months for $11M Health Care Kickback Scheme · New Jersey
- Coral Springs Scammer Sentenced for $11M Health Care Kickback Scheme · New Jersey
- NJ Doctor Vincent J. Gamuzza Indicted in $250K Health Care Fraud · Pennsylvania
Key Facts
- State: New Jersey
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes|Organized Crime
- Source: Official Source ↗
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