Fla. man pleads guilty to $39M medicare fraud case with connections to NH

CONCORD - A Florida man pleaded guilty on Thursday for his role in a conspiracy to defraud Medicare of $39.5 million.

Christopher Spellman, 22, of Port Richey, Fla., pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud. U.S. District Court Judge Samantha Elliott scheduled sentencing for Nov. 21. Spellman was charged on July 17.

According to court documents, Spellman and his co-conspirators owned and operated Dimon Business Solution, LLC, a purported durable medical equipment (DME) management company. Dimon operated a network of DME supplier businesses throughout the country, including two in New Hampshire. However, Spellman and his co-conspirators concealed their ownership interests in the DME suppliers by using nominee owners. Spellman and his co-conspirators paid kickbacks and bribes for signed doctors' orders prescribing orthotic braces. Ultimately, Medicare beneficiaries received orthotic braces that were medically unnecessary, procured through illegal kickbacks and bribes, and not often wanted or needed.

During the conspiracy, Spellman and his co-conspirators submitted, or caused the submission of, false and fraudulent claims to Medicare in excess of $39.5 million for orthotic braces that were medically unnecessary, ineligible for Medicare reimbursement, or not provided as represented. Medicare paid at least $23 million to DME suppliers secretly owned and operated by Spellman and his co-conspirators for these claims.

The charging statute provides a sentence of no greater than 10 years in prison, 3 years of supervised release, and a fine of $250,000 or twice the pecuniary gain. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.