RALEIGH, N.C. - A Raleigh man was sentenced today to 204 months in prison for conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud, healthcare fraud, ten counts of wire fraud and ten counts of aggravated identity theft. On Oct. 19, 2022, Furman Alexander Ford, 53, was convicted by jury trial of all of the charges.
“We live in a generous nation, but some choose to feed their greed at the expense of those in need. This defendant stole the identities of Medicare beneficiaries to defraud a taxpayer-funded program intended to help elderly, poor and disabled citizens," said U.S. Attorney Michael Easley. “This 17-year sentence is fitting for a defendant who stole from the most vulnerable in our society."
According to court records and evidence presented at trial, Furman Alexander Ford, was the owner and operator of IAM Healthcare based in Raleigh, North Carolina. The investigation and trial evidence showed that Ford oversaw a scheme to trick group homes located in Wake, Durham and Johnston Counties into providing client Medicare information. Ford also targeted small community churches in Bladen County by offering food in exchange for Medicare information. Ford then used the information from these schemes to submit Medicare claims on behalf of these elderly and disabled beneficiaries who did not receive any services from IAM Healthcare. Specifically, Ford submitted fraudulent claims from December, 2018 to February, 2020, to Medicare for reimbursement. In total, Ford caused more than $500,000 to be billed to Medicare through IAM Healthcare. At least 74 beneficiaries whose information had been stolen had claims submitted to Medicare for services not rendered. Those claims alone totaled at least $251,508, of which $166,928 was paid to Ford.
In reflecting upon the need to deter Medicare providers from abusing the trust placed in them by taxpayers, the Court stated, “if they are caught, the consequences will be time in a penitentiary, and that’s fair and that’s just, and that what is going to happen today."
Michael Easley, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge James C. Dever III. The Department of Health cand Human Services - Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) investigated the case, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ethan A. Ontjes and William Gilmore prosecuted the case.
Related court documents and information can be found on the website of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina or on PACER by searching for Case No. 5:20-cr-00351-FL-1.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys