In a recent case, after a five-day trial of one count of conspiracy to pay health care kickbacks and paying and receiving kickbacks, a long sentence was handed out by a federal district court judge to a pharmacy owner and pharmacist.
On March 30, 2018, the owner of a Florida pharmacy, Larry B. Howard, also a licensed
pharmacist, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Paul G. Byron to serve 160 months in prison and ordered to pay $4.3 million in restitution for his role in this case.
Cases such as this one focus on the marketing that occurs in a party obtaining referrals for compounding creams and then pharmacies who paid the marketing company a fee for the referral and then payments to the physicians to obtain the prescriptions create a tangled tale of cross referrals andpayments.
The evidence at trial showed that pharmacist Howard paid referral or marketing fees (which the government considered illegal health care kickbacks) to a co-defendant Raymond Stone, who in return referred patients to doctors previously selected by Mr. Howard. The doctors then prescribed pain and scar creams to the patients which Mr. Howard's pharmacy then billed to TRICARE.
One of the physicians who was a co-defendant, Nicole Bramelle, was also convicted and the evidence showed that she was paid by Mr. Howard's pharmacy which the government claims were illegal health care kickbacks. The billing on these creams was allegedly expensive (up to $17,000 per bottle). Between October 2014 and May 2015, TRICARE paid Fertility Pharmacy over $4.3 million and when the referral or marketing payments are deemed to be "illegal kickbacks" all claims are false and must be paid back.
One of the physicians who was a co-defendant, Nicole Bramelle, was also convicted and the evidence showed that she was paid by Mr. Howard's pharmacy which the government claims were illegal health care kickbacks. The billing on these creams was allegedly expensive (up to $17,000 per bottle). Between October 2014 and May 2015, TRICARE paid Fertility Pharmacy over $4.3 million and when the referral or marketing payments are deemed to be "illegal kickbacks" all claims are false and must be paid back.
Two of the codefendants have yet to be sentenced. Dr. Bramwell’s sentencing is scheduled for May 9. Mr. Stone is
scheduled to be sentenced on April 27. These long sentences should make companies and their personnel realize that these referral arrangements are truly a problem if criminal charges are filed.
