Tampa, FL – A Jacksonville compounding pharmacy and its principal owner have been accused of bilking Tricare for millions in unnecessary pain creams.
U.S. Attorney Roger B. Handberg announced today that the Middle District of Florida (MDFL) has collected $78,043,065 related to local criminal and civil matters in the fiscal year ending September 30, 2023 (FY 2023). Of this amount, $36,767,863 was collected in criminal cases and $28,641,442 was collected in civil actions.
The MDFL’s Civil Division, led by Civil Chief Randy Harwell, recovered a total of $41,230,830 on behalf of federal agencies and programs in affirmative civil enforcement cases during the last fiscal year. This amount has two components. In addition to its efforts in local civil cases noted above, the District’s Civil Division also joins forces with other U.S. Attorney’s Offices and with the U.S. Attorney’s Civil Frauds Section to address fraud schemes and illegal practices extending beyond district boundaries. The MDFL’s Civil Division recovered an additional $12,589,388 in these jointly handled cases.
"We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to investigate and prosecute those who seek to illegally exploit federal government programs by fraudulent means," said U.S. Attorney Roger B. Handberg. "The funds recovered in the previous fiscal year will help victims recover from their losses and assist law enforcement in pursuing justice."
The MDFL’s Asset Recovery Division, led by Chief Anita Cream, recovered a total of $55,930,305. This amount has two components—criminal monetary penalties and forfeiture. First, in addition to the $36,767,863 in criminal monetary penalties collected in cases prosecuted by the District, the Asset Recovery Division worked with other U.S. Attorney’s Offices and components of the U.S. Attorney’s Office to collect an additional $44,372 in criminal monetary penalties pursued jointly by these offices.
Additionally, the District’s Asset Recovery Division, working with partner agencies, forfeited $19,118,070 from criminal and civil asset forfeiture actions in FY 2023. For instance, in FY 2023, almost $44 million forfeited in the MDFL was returned to victims of the criminal offenses, and more than $3 million was shared with federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies. Forfeited assets deposited into the U.S. Attorney’s Assets Forfeiture Fund are used to restore funds to crime victims and for a variety of law enforcement purposes.
One significant affirmative civil enforcement case includes United States ex rel. Sanchez v. Smart Pharmacy, et al., Case no. 3:14cv1493 (M.D. Fla.). The United States intervened in two related qui tam cases in June 2018 and litigated the government’s claims against a large Jacksonville area compounding pharmacy, Smart Pharmacy, and one of its principal owners, Gregory Balotin, claiming that the pharmacy billed the Tricare program for millions of dollars in reimbursement for medically unnecessary pain creams. Specifically, the intervenor complaint alleged the pharmacy created compounded creams using an anti-psychotic agent, Ariprazole, for no medical purpose and solely to boost reimbursement. The complaint also alleged that the pharmacy routinely waived patient co-payments, without regard to patient need, to improperly incentivize prescriptions for the unnecessary pain creams. In June 2023, we announced a settlement of all claims in exchange for $7.4 million.
The funds recovered in the previous fiscal year will help victims recover from their losses and assist law enforcement in pursuing justice.
Tampa, FL – The funds recovered will be used to restore funds to crime victims and for a variety of law enforcement purposes.
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Key Facts
- State: Florida
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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