Theresa Kordish, Making a False Statement Relating to Health Care Matters, Michigan 2025

GRAND RAPIDS - In a shocking revelation, U.S. Attorney Mark Totten announced that Theresa Kordish, a 45-year-old doctor from Kalamazoo, MI, has pleaded guilty to making a false statement relating to healthcare matters.

Kordish, who was practicing medicine without integrity, admitted to using a telemedicine program to authorize medical orders for patients she never met or examined, approving most orders in mere seconds. The court documents reveal that Kordish and her associates wasted millions of dollars in Medicare funds to line their pockets.

According to the indictment, Kordish and her co-defendants were involved in a nationwide telemedicine scheme that defrauded Medicare of billions of dollars by ordering medically unnecessary orthotic braces and genetic testing. The scheme, which was uncovered through Operation 'Happy Clickers,' a joint initiative between the U.S. Attorney's Office, the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services' Office of the Inspector General (HHS-OIG), and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), involved marketers placing phone calls to Medicare beneficiaries to obtain enough information to fill out fraudulent medical orders.

The marketers then paid doctors to approve these orders through telemedicine programs for patients they never met in violation of federal healthcare laws. The marketers then sold the signed orders to medical supply companies and laboratories in violation of federal anti-kickback laws.

Kordish's guilty plea is a significant blow to the nationwide telemedicine scheme, which has been operating for years. The doctor's actions demonstrate a blatant disregard for the law and the trust placed in medical professionals. As U.S. Attorney Mark Totten stated, 'These schemes worked only because physicians checked their training and oaths at the door and click-signed medical orders without an appropriate medical review.'

Kordish is scheduled to be sentenced on February 10, 2025. The U.S. Attorney's Office has also reached civil settlements with three other physicians, including Derek Grossman, D.O., of Traverse City, MI, who agreed to pay $295,192.93 to resolve allegations that he used a telemedicine program to order over 1,300 medically unnecessary orthotic braces.

The investigation into the nationwide telemedicine scheme is ongoing, and the U.S. Attorney's Office is working to bring those responsible to justice. As Totten emphasized, 'My office will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to hold medical practitioners responsible for participating in these schemes.'

Defendant: Theresa Kordish, D.O.

Criminal Charges: Making a False Statement Relating to Health Care Matters (18 U.S.C. § 1035)

City and State: Kalamazoo, MI

Exact Date: Plea entered February 10, 2025

Sentence or Outcome: Scheduled to be sentenced on February 10, 2025

Dollar Amounts: $50,000 fine

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-wdmi/pr/2024_1118_OperationHappyClickersSettlement