Georgia man pleads guilty to $127M fraud scheme

NEWARK, N.J. – Nicco Romanowski, of Roswell, Ga., pleaded guilty to conspiracy to violate the federal anti-kickback statute and conspiracy to commit health care fraud. From June 2017 through May 2019, Romanowski participated in a scheme with DME companies, telemedicine companies and doctors to submit false claims to health care benefit programs, including Medicare and Tricare. In total, Romanowski and his conspirators caused the submission of false and fraudulent claims to health care benefit programs totaling more than $127 million for DME. Romanowski operated a marketing company where employees of the company called beneficiaries to pressure them to agree to accept DME, frequently consisting of back, shoulder and knee braces. Romanowski and his conspirators paid the company’s employees commissions, bonuses and incentives to encourage them to convince as many beneficiaries as possible to accept DME, regardless of medical necessity. Romanowski paid kickbacks to telemedicine companies, which in turn paid kickbacks to doctors, to obtain doctor’s orders for the DME. The doctors paid by the telemedicine companies signed the orders regardless of medical necessity, often without ever speaking to the patient. Romanowski and his business partner, Eric Karlewicz, then steered the orders to DME suppliers. The company received more than $63 million from DME suppliers. Karlewicz previously pleaded guilty to an information charging conspiracy to violate the anti-kickback statute and conspiracy to commit health care fraud. Sentencing is scheduled for May 21, 2024.