The U.S. Attorney's Office for the northern district of Illinois announced the creation of a new unit dedicated solely to the prosecution of healthcare fraud.
The new Healthcare Fraud Unit will fall under the umbrella of the office's Criminal Division and will prosecute the full spectrum of from billing schemes, to physicians who falsify diagnoses for material gain and various other types of cases, the Department of Justice said.
The unit will be staffed by five prosecutors led by Assistant U.S. Attorney Heather McShain.
Recently the office was part of the massive nationwide healthcare fraud takedown that saw more than 400 people charged, including 15 in their northern Illinois district. Their district has also seen several other significant cases in the past few months, including the prosecution of a north suburban chiropractor, his father and brother for a billing scheme that milked insurance carriers for nearly $11 million. All three were sentenced to prison terms.
[Also: Running list of notable 2017 healthcare frauds]
The office is also responsible for ten criminal convictions as part of the investigation into Sacred Heart Hospital in Chicago. The DOJ said for more than a decade, Sacred Heart executives conspired to pay kickbacks and bribes so they would refer patients for services that would be reimbursed by Medicare and Medicaid. The fraud scheme earned Sacred Heart millions of dollars from Medicare and Medicaid. Those convicted include the hospital's CEO/owner, CFO, two COOs and five physicians. The hospital closed in 2013.
Twitter: @BethJSanborn