Crown Medical agrees to $825K settlement for unnecessary DME
By HME News Staff
Updated 9:06 AM CDT, Tue September 22, 2026
WASHINGTON – Crown Medical Solutions and its owners, Michelle and Philanzo King, have agreed to pay $825,000 to resolve allegations that they violated the False Claims Act by submitting false claims for payment to Medicare for durable medical equipment (DME), such as knee braces, heel stabilizers and back braces, according to the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). The government alleged that, from Nov. 1, 2017, through April 30, 2019, Crown and its owners billed Medicare for DME provided to Medicare beneficiaries that was not medically necessary and/or not properly prescribed by a physician. The settlement is based on the ability of the defendants to pay. “The Department of Justice is committed to fighting health care fraud and holding accountable those who exploit federal health care programs for personal profit,” said Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. The civil settlement includes the resolution of claims brought under the qui tam or whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act by Karen Martinelli. As part of this resolution, Martinelli will receive approximately $123,750 of the settlement amount. The resolution obtained in this matter was the result of a coordinated effort between the Justice Department’s Civil Division, Commercial Litigation Branch, Fraud Section, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia.
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