Capital City Health Care Provider Arrested on Medicaid Fraud
Release Date
Jul 17, 2020
Contact
Kylie Mason
Phone
850-245-0150
TALLAHASSEE, Fla.—Attorney General Ashley Moody’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, with the assistance of the Leon County Sheriff’s Office, today arrested a Medicaid provider on charges related to $50,000 in fraud. The arrest follows an MFCU investigation that revealed Rodney Burt, 57, billed the Florida Medicaid Program for services not rendered from May 2016 through November 2019.
Attorney General Ashley Moody said, “Participation in Florida’s Medicaid Program is increasing during this health crisis, and we will do everything in our power to protect taxpayer funds from fraud. That is why my Medicaid Fraud Control Unit attorneys and investigators aggressively chase down leads and uncover abuses in this taxpayer funded health care program to ensure those who would aim to rip off taxpayers are stopped and brought to justice.”
Additionally, the investigation uncovered that Burt, owner of No Place Like Home, a Home and Community Based Service Provider, assigned inaccurate billing codes to claims submitted to the Florida Medicaid Program in order to increase reimbursements—a fraudulent billing practice known as upcoding.
To view the Probable Cause Affidavit, click here.
Burt is charged with one count of Medicaid provider fraud $50,000 or more, a first-degree felony. If convicted, Burt faces up to 30 years in prison and more than $300,000 in fines and restitution.
The Attorney General’s MFCU will prosecute the case through an agreement with the State Attorney’s Office in the Second Judicial Circuit.
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The Florida Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit investigates and prosecutes providers that intentionally defraud the state’s Medicaid program through fraudulent billing practices. Medicaid fraud essentially steals from Florida’s taxpayers. Additionally, the MFCU investigates allegations of patient abuse, neglect, and exploitation in facilities receiving payments under the Medicaid program.