Joel Rufus French, Medicare Fraud, Mississippi 2024

Former NFL Player Sentenced to Over 16 Years in Prison for $197M Medicare Fraud

A former NFL player who owned a marketing company and was the beneficial owner of eight durable medical equipment (DME) companies has been sentenced to 196 months in prison for his role in a yearslong scheme to bilk Medicare and the Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs (CHAMPVA) out of nearly $200 million.

Joel Rufus French, 47, of Armory, Mississippi, was ordered to pay $110,753,619 in restitution and to forfeit approximately $17 million that the government seized from bank accounts and other assets.

French, who worked with overseas telemarketing call centers, pressured elderly Americans to provide their personal and health insurance information and agree to accept medically unnecessary orthotic braces. In certain instances, the call centers altered call recordings to make it seem like Medicare patients agreed to the braces when they did not.

He paid sham telemedicine companies kickbacks to obtain signed doctors’ orders from doctors and nurse practitioners who never examined, and often never even spoke to, the patients. He sold the orders to marketers and medical supply companies, which then submitted claims to Medicare.

The scheme, which compromised the integrity of the Department of Veterans Affairs’ programs and services, diverted funds from deserving veterans and their families.

“Fueled by lies, bribes, and overseas telemarketers, this corrupt scheme preyed on senior citizens and disabled veterans to flood the country with unnecessary medical devices — and then billed the taxpayer for it,” said Assistant Attorney General Colin M. McDonald of the Justice Department’s National Fraud Enforcement Division.

French was convicted of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, and conspiracy to offer, pay, or solicit bribes.

He laundered approximately $225,000 in cash from a bank in Mississippi, over $10,000 of which was placed in a bag and driven to Orlando to pay accomplices who sold him beneficiaries’ personal and insurance information.

After a six-day jury trial ending in February, French was convicted of the aforementioned crimes.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, French exploited some of the most vulnerable people these programs were created to protect, including elderly patients and the families of disabled and deceased veterans.

Acting Deputy Inspector General for Investigations Scott J. Lampert of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG) stated that French’s lengthy sentence underscores the seriousness of his crimes and sends a clear message: HHS-OIG and our law enforcement partners remain steadfast in safeguarding taxpayer-funded programs and ensuring those who seek to defraud them will be found, stopped, and held accountable.

Acting Special Agent in Charge Greg Wentz of the VA Office of Inspector General (VA OIG) Southeast Field Office added, “Schemes such as these compromise the integrity of the Department of Veterans Affairs’ programs and services and divert funds from our nation’s deserving veterans and their families.”

The defendant’s crimes compromised the integrity of the Department of Veterans Affairs’ programs and services and diverted funds from deserving veterans and their families.

French, a former NFL player, was sentenced on April 30, 2024, to 196 months in prison for his role in the Medicare fraud scheme.

The court also ordered French to pay $110,753,619 in restitution and to forfeit approximately $17 million that the government seized from bank accounts and other assets.

The scheme, which bilked Medicare and the Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs (CHAMPVA) out of nearly $200 million, was a brazen and yearslong operation that preyed on elderly patients and the families of disabled and deceased veterans.

French paid sham telemedicine companies kickbacks to obtain signed doctors’ orders from doctors and nurse practitioners who never examined, and often never even spoke to, the patients.

He laundered approximately $225,000 in cash from a bank in Mississippi, over $10,000 of which was placed in a bag and driven to Orlando to pay accomplices who sold him beneficiaries’ personal and insurance information.

The government seized from bank accounts and other assets approximately $17 million that the defendant was ordered to forfeit.

The scheme compromised the integrity of the Department of Veterans Affairs’ programs and services and diverted funds from deserving veterans and their families.

French’s lengthy sentence underscores the seriousness of his crimes and sends a clear message: HHS-OIG and our law enforcement partners remain steadfast in safeguarding taxpayer-funded programs and ensuring those who seek to defraud them will be found, stopped, and held accountable.

The court also ordered French to pay $110,753,619 in restitution.

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