Yet another healthcare worker has been sentenced in connection with a $200 million fraud scheme the federal government has called one of the largest in U.S. history.
Licensed nursing assistant Rodolfo Santaya was sentenced in Miami to 150 months in prison and ordered to pay more than $18.2 million in restitution in connection with a Miami mental health company accused of fraudulently billing Medicare, according to the Justice Department.
A federal jury in July convicted Santaya of conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud and wire fraud, conspiracy to pay and receive bribes and kickbacks and two counts of receipt of bribes and kickbacks in connection with a federal healthcare program.
Santaya's lawyer declined to comment, saying only that Santaya plans to appeal. More than 20 individuals already have pleaded guilty or been convicted at trial in connection with allegedly fraudulent billings by Miami mental health company American Therapeutic Corp., which operated partial-hospitalization programs to treat severe mental illness in seven locations.
