A Florida woman has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for one of the most elaborate fraud schemes in recent history.
According to the Department of Justice, 45-year-old nurse practitioner Elizabeth Hernandez masterminded a fraudulent operation worth over $192 million.
“According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Elizabeth Hernandez, 45, of Miami, signed thousands of orders for medically unnecessary orthotic braces and genetic testing for Medicare beneficiaries she never spoke to, examined, or treated,” the DOJ wrote in a news release.
“As part of the scheme, telemarketing companies would contact Medicare beneficiaries to convince them to accept orthotic braces and genetic tests and would then send pre-filled orders for these products to Hernandez, who signed them, attesting that she had examined or treated the patients.”
“However, she had never spoken with many of the patients, and she often had others, including non-licensed individuals, sign her name to fraudulent orders,” the release continued.