Outliers: Medicare fraud lawsuit has an Oscar connection

Fans of “The Wolf of Wall Street” will be intrigued to know that the man who inspired one of the most memorable characters in the Oscar-nominated movie is now starring in a real-life healthcare drama.

Danny Porush—named Donnie Azoff in the Martin Scorsese flick and played with manic glee by Jonah Hill—is being sued for alleged Medicare fraud in connection with Med-Care Diabetic & Medical Supplies, Reuters reported. The whistle-blower lawsuit names Porush and five other leaders of the Boca Raton, Fla.-based company.

Former employee Tiffany Bumbury brought the lawsuit under the False Claims Act, claiming that the privately held company used “deceitful, high-pressure telemarketing” to sell Medicare patients medical equipment they didn't need.

Med-Care has also attracted congressional attention. In April 2013, Med-Care President Steven Silverman, who is also named in the lawsuit, testified before a Senate Financial and Contracting Oversight Subcommittee hearing on the practices of durable medical equipment companies. Approximately 68% of a sampling of Med-Care's claims were improper, according to staff memo prepared for the hearing.

No word on whether Scorsese and Hill are planning a sequel based on Porush's adventures after serving four years in prison for money laundering and securities fraud. South Florida's storied history of Medicare fraud certainly offers a throng of colorful and convicted characters who could fill an epic. May Outliers suggest “The Miscreants of Medicare” as a title?

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