A U.S. District judge has sentenced a Texas man and former home health company owner to serve 57 months in federal prison in connection with conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud.
Akintunde Oyewale, 47, of Richmond, TX, also has agreed to pay Medicare over $1.4 million in restitution. He operated Grace Healthcare Services through 2017. During his time in charge, Grace billed Medicare for home health services that were not medically necessary or provided, Oyewale admitted. Grace also unlawfully paid medical clinics for fraudulent home health certifications and patient referrals.
Oyewale’s defense requested a reduced sentence due to his role as a father, as well as a caretaker of his mother. When passing down the sentence, U.S. District Judge David Hittner indicated that Oyewale had family commitments during the time of his offenses — which were conducted over a span of several years.
Oyewale, who pleaded guilty in February, also admitted to failing to keep records and to failing to present records following the receipt of a grand jury subpoena.
The Texas Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, Department of Health and Human Services – Office of Inspector General and FBI conducted the investigation. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Abdul Farukhi and AUSA Christian Latham prosecuted the case.
This case is one of several big-ticket Medicare fraud cases in recent months. In March, a husband and wife were charged in a $8.7 million Medicare home health fraud scheme.
