HARRISON, Ark. – The U.S. government will receive nearly $3.5 million in assets, including five parcels of residential property, from the estate of a late doctor who investigators think fraudulently received nearly $15 million from the Medicare and Tricare government health care programs. Dr. Stacey Johnson, who practiced in Mountain Home, died last year.
The forfeiture from Johnson’s estate is a settlement of a civil lawsuit filed last September by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Arkansas. Investigators found property and funds worth a little more than $4 million in Johnson’s estate. A Probate Court judge ordered most of it to go to the government. An assistant U.S. attorney says she’s not aware of any other assets that the federal government might be able to gain.
Johnson was not charged criminally for the federal program over-payments. In October 2009, the Arkansas Medical Board stripped him of his medical license. It said Johnson “exhibited gross negligence” in ordering more than 80 procedures for one patient in less than a month in 2008; 23 of those were done in one day. The state’s investigation showed most of those procedures were unnecessary.
Edited news release:
According to the affidavit filed with the civil forfeiture, Johnson was a licensed cardiologist. From Nov. 14, 1980, to Dec. 30, 2009, Johnson owned and operated the Physicians’ Medical Center of the Ozarks, a medical practice and outpatient surgical center, and Physicians’ Surgical Center of the Ozarks, an outpatient surgical center, both located in Mountain Home.
In 2006, an investigation into Johnson’s practice was launched after it was discovered that Johnson had a significant increase in billings to Medicare for the period of 2001 through 2006 and an increase in CT scans from 2004 to 2005.
According to the pleadings in the forfeiture action, the investigation determined Johnson ordered numerous tests for his patients that were not medically supported and ordered unnecessary tests that were duplicative in nature, and had falsely billed the Medicare and Tricare programs.
Johnson passed away in March 2013. According to a Petition for Probate of Will and Appointment of Personal Representative filed by his estate on March 14, 2013, in the Circuit Court of Baxter County, Probate Division, Johnson’s estate was valued at approximately $3.5 million in real and personal property. The U.S. Attorney’s Office filed a Claim against the Estate on behalf of the United States Department of Health and Human Services for Medicare overpayment in the amount of $14,716,191.
According to documents filed with the Claim, the overpayment amount was established by a Post-Payment Review of Medicare services billed by Johnson from January 2004 to June 2006 and January 2007 to June 2009. As a result of the audit, it was determined Johnson, individually and, doing business as Stacy M. Johnson M.D., F.A.C.P, and as president and sole stockholder of Physicians’ Medical Center of the Ozarks and Physicians’ Surgical Center of the Ozarks was indebted to the United States for the overpayment.
Under the terms of the Order entered by Judge Gary Isbell in the state Circuit Court Probate case, based on an agreement with the Personal Representative of the Estate, the United States will be paid the proceeds of a promissory note owing to Johnson in the amount of $2,500,000, and the United States will take title to five real properties owned by Johnson with a value of $980,000.
The personal representative will receive the balance of the Estate valued at $366,400. The real properties will be sold and the proceeds of sale and those from the promissory note will be recouped by the United States Medicare Program.
The complaint filed in the forfeiture action alleged that property named in the action was constructed with proceeds derived from Johnson’s illegal billings to the Medicare and Tricare Programs. Under federal forfeiture laws, the government is authorized to seek the forfeiture of any property with a requisite nexus to criminal activity, regardless of the owner of record.
The home in Mountain Home that is the subject of the government forfeiture was owned at the time of the filing of the Complaint by Johnson’s ex-wife. She surrendered $600,000 from the home, which was also encumbered by other liens.
“Medicare fraud, especially of this magnitude, has a direct effect on each and every taxpayer in the State of Arkansas. This doctor built his fortune by scheming to defraud a healthcare program that was designed to benefit some of the most vulnerable people in our society, the elderly and young people facing end of life illnesses. I applaud the investigative efforts in unraveling this elaborate scheme. Our office will do everything possible to ensure that this type of criminal activity is exposed and that the victims of these crimes are recompensed for their losses,” said U.S. Attorney Connor Eldridge.
“As the investigative arm of the Department of Defense – Office of Inspector General, one of the primary missions of the DCIS is the detection of fraud, especially the type that targets critical funding for healthcare for our warfighters, their families and military retirees,” said Janice Flores, special agent in charge of the DCIS Southwest Field Office, Arlington, Texas. “This investigation demonstrates the commitment of DCIS and our law enforcement partners from HHS-OIG in rooting out and stopping healthcare fraud and to recoup monies fraudulently obtained.”
Mike Fields, Special Agent-in-Charge, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, Dallas Regional Office emphasized that any time false claims are submitted for payment, the nation’s health insurance programs suffer. HHS-OIG investigators will continue to work closely with our law enforcement partners to identify providers who deliberately manipulate the system to obtain crucial Medicare or Medicaid dollars.
The cases were investigated by agents of the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, and the Defense Criminal Investigative Service.
Attribution:
Feds gain $3.5 million from estate of late doctor in Mountain Home
Gene Hartley
June 23, 2014
KSPR.com
http://www.kspr.com/news/local/feds-gain-35-million-from-estate-of-late-doctor-in-mountain-home/21051620_26622696
The forfeiture from Johnson’s estate is a settlement of a civil lawsuit filed last September by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Arkansas. Investigators found property and funds worth a little more than $4 million in Johnson’s estate. A Probate Court judge ordered most of it to go to the government. An assistant U.S. attorney says she’s not aware of any other assets that the federal government might be able to gain.
Johnson was not charged criminally for the federal program over-payments. In October 2009, the Arkansas Medical Board stripped him of his medical license. It said Johnson “exhibited gross negligence” in ordering more than 80 procedures for one patient in less than a month in 2008; 23 of those were done in one day. The state’s investigation showed most of those procedures were unnecessary.
Edited news release:
According to the affidavit filed with the civil forfeiture, Johnson was a licensed cardiologist. From Nov. 14, 1980, to Dec. 30, 2009, Johnson owned and operated the Physicians’ Medical Center of the Ozarks, a medical practice and outpatient surgical center, and Physicians’ Surgical Center of the Ozarks, an outpatient surgical center, both located in Mountain Home.
In 2006, an investigation into Johnson’s practice was launched after it was discovered that Johnson had a significant increase in billings to Medicare for the period of 2001 through 2006 and an increase in CT scans from 2004 to 2005.
According to the pleadings in the forfeiture action, the investigation determined Johnson ordered numerous tests for his patients that were not medically supported and ordered unnecessary tests that were duplicative in nature, and had falsely billed the Medicare and Tricare programs.
Johnson passed away in March 2013. According to a Petition for Probate of Will and Appointment of Personal Representative filed by his estate on March 14, 2013, in the Circuit Court of Baxter County, Probate Division, Johnson’s estate was valued at approximately $3.5 million in real and personal property. The U.S. Attorney’s Office filed a Claim against the Estate on behalf of the United States Department of Health and Human Services for Medicare overpayment in the amount of $14,716,191.
According to documents filed with the Claim, the overpayment amount was established by a Post-Payment Review of Medicare services billed by Johnson from January 2004 to June 2006 and January 2007 to June 2009. As a result of the audit, it was determined Johnson, individually and, doing business as Stacy M. Johnson M.D., F.A.C.P, and as president and sole stockholder of Physicians’ Medical Center of the Ozarks and Physicians’ Surgical Center of the Ozarks was indebted to the United States for the overpayment.
Under the terms of the Order entered by Judge Gary Isbell in the state Circuit Court Probate case, based on an agreement with the Personal Representative of the Estate, the United States will be paid the proceeds of a promissory note owing to Johnson in the amount of $2,500,000, and the United States will take title to five real properties owned by Johnson with a value of $980,000.
The personal representative will receive the balance of the Estate valued at $366,400. The real properties will be sold and the proceeds of sale and those from the promissory note will be recouped by the United States Medicare Program.
The complaint filed in the forfeiture action alleged that property named in the action was constructed with proceeds derived from Johnson’s illegal billings to the Medicare and Tricare Programs. Under federal forfeiture laws, the government is authorized to seek the forfeiture of any property with a requisite nexus to criminal activity, regardless of the owner of record.
The home in Mountain Home that is the subject of the government forfeiture was owned at the time of the filing of the Complaint by Johnson’s ex-wife. She surrendered $600,000 from the home, which was also encumbered by other liens.
“Medicare fraud, especially of this magnitude, has a direct effect on each and every taxpayer in the State of Arkansas. This doctor built his fortune by scheming to defraud a healthcare program that was designed to benefit some of the most vulnerable people in our society, the elderly and young people facing end of life illnesses. I applaud the investigative efforts in unraveling this elaborate scheme. Our office will do everything possible to ensure that this type of criminal activity is exposed and that the victims of these crimes are recompensed for their losses,” said U.S. Attorney Connor Eldridge.
“As the investigative arm of the Department of Defense – Office of Inspector General, one of the primary missions of the DCIS is the detection of fraud, especially the type that targets critical funding for healthcare for our warfighters, their families and military retirees,” said Janice Flores, special agent in charge of the DCIS Southwest Field Office, Arlington, Texas. “This investigation demonstrates the commitment of DCIS and our law enforcement partners from HHS-OIG in rooting out and stopping healthcare fraud and to recoup monies fraudulently obtained.”
Mike Fields, Special Agent-in-Charge, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, Dallas Regional Office emphasized that any time false claims are submitted for payment, the nation’s health insurance programs suffer. HHS-OIG investigators will continue to work closely with our law enforcement partners to identify providers who deliberately manipulate the system to obtain crucial Medicare or Medicaid dollars.
The cases were investigated by agents of the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, and the Defense Criminal Investigative Service.
Attribution:
Feds gain $3.5 million from estate of late doctor in Mountain Home
Gene Hartley
June 23, 2014
KSPR.com
http://www.kspr.com/news/local/feds-gain-35-million-from-estate-of-late-doctor-in-mountain-home/21051620_26622696
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