Cleveland Trio Sentenced for $3 Million Medicaid Scam

CLEVELAND, OH - A court sentenced three Clevelanders to prison for using a scam to steal $3 million from Medicaid. The trio used a fake home health service company to rip off the government program and bill it for medical services that never actually occurred. They also bribed actual patients to claim they were getting services from the fake company.

“These defendants stole millions of dollars from the public,” U.S. Attorney Carole S. Rendon said in a statement. “They have earned their time in prison. We will continue to work collaboratively to protect taxpayers and programs receiving federal dollars.”

The three worked at Lifeline Home Health Services, which was incorporated in 2006 and had an office at 12200 Fairhill Road in Cleveland. Here were the sentences: George Epps, 43, of Cleveland, was sentenced to 46 months in prison. Abdulazis Warsame, 51, of Cleveland, was sentenced to 37 months in prison. Amir Ahmed, 51, of Columbus, was sentenced to 27 months in prison.

The scam started in 2009 and last four years, into 2013. The trio would submit fake documents to Medicaid claiming they were a healthcare provider. They forged documents to make it look like doctors were approving the use of their facility for specific types of care. Then Epps, Warsame, and Ahmed would then bill Medicaid for the fake visits. Court documents also show that Ahmed offered cash to patients that would "become patients" of Lifeline.

Their efforts paid off. The trio collected more than $3 million from Medicaid over the four year stretch.

“These defendants orchestrated a multi-million dollar conspiracy to defraud Ohio Medicaid and live off of taxpayer dollars that they were never entitled to receive,” said Attorney General Mike DeWine in a statement. “Their conduct was egregious, and it is something that authorities with my office are trained to identify, investigate, and prosecute. I’m pleased that prison time and restitution was ordered in this case because this behavior will not be tolerated in Ohio.”

Photo from Shutterstock