Tag: Braces
Three men sentenced for submitting $6.9M fraudulent claims for braces
May 26, 2026HME News Staff
WASHINGTON – Three Florida men have been sentenced to prison for their participation in a scheme to defraud Medicare and launder more than $2.2 million in illicit health care fraud proceeds, according to the Department of Justice (DOJ).
Marco Scamarone, 34, of Tamarac, Florida, was sentenced to 70 months in prison.
Jose Mendez, 34, of Coral Springs, Florida, was sentenced to 78 months in prison.
Renee Vazquez, 33, of Tamarac, Florida, was sentenced to 60 months in prison.
According...
Fraud roundup: Three individuals sentenced in brace-related schemes
March 10, 2026HME News Staff
BOSTON – A Geneva, Ill., man has been sentenced in a Boston federal court to two years in prison for a fraud scheme to defraud Medicare of more than $2 million by submitting claims for durable medical equipment (DME) that was medically unnecessary, not wanted by the Medicare beneficiaries and tainted by kickbacks. In August 2025, Kartik Bhatia, 36, was charged with one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and one count of making false statements. According to the U.S. Attorney’s...
Kinex Medical Company agrees to pay $6.9M settlement
March 9, 2026HME News Staff
MILWAUKEE – Kinex Medical Company has agreed to pay $6.9 million to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by submitting false claims to Medicare, TRICARE, and other federal programs, according to the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Wisconsin. Based in Waukesha, Wis., Kinex sells and distributes durable medical equipment (DME), including knee, shoulder, and hip braces, to patients across the United States. After receiving information from a whistleblower, the United...
Medline helps Iowa Ortho streamline operations, improve procurement
July 17, 2025HME News Staff
NORTHFIELD, Ill. - Medline has announced a prime vendor agreement with Des Moines, Iowa-based Iowa Ortho, which offers medical evaluations and medical care for a wide variety of areas ranging from general orthopedics to sports medicine to neck and spine. Under the agreement, Iowa Ortho has:
Access to Medline’s portfolio of products and data to help drive increased standardization, operational efficiency and cost savings across the organization
The added stability to acquire...
Rothman Orthopaedics to implement Dimension Ortho’s platform
June 25, 2025HME News Staff
PHILADELPHIA – Rothman Orthopaedics will implement Dimension Ortho's platform for personalized bracing and fracture care across its clinical sites, setting a new standard for patient care, the companies say. "Our goal is to provide more streamlined and patient-centric, comfortable recovery," said Michael Rivlin, MD, president and co-founder of Dimension Ortho. "Dimension Ortho's partnership with Rothman Orthopaedics will allow thousands of patients to experience minimal...
DMERx CEO convicted in $1B fraud scheme
June 5, 2025HME News Staff
WASHINGTON – Federal authorities have convicted Gary Cox, 79, CEO of Power Mobility Doctor Rx (DMERx), for orchestrating a $1 billion Medicare fraud scheme involving false doctor orders for medically unnecessary equipment like braces and treatments. Cox and his co-conspirators misled seniors into providing personal information through deceptive advertising and offshore call centers, then used DMERx—a digital platform—to create fraudulent prescriptions. These orders were exchanged...
Fraud watch: Braces, braces and more braces
May 29, 2025HME News Staff
Chula Vista, Calif., resident and business owner Fernando Valenzuela Ayub pleaded guilty in federal court May 27, admitting that he conspired with others to launder millions of dollars of health care fraud proceeds and paid unlawful kickbacks. According to his plea agreement, Valenzuela and co-conspirators owned and operated multiple DME companies, which sold orthotics – including back, wrist and knee braces – to Medicare beneficiaries. Valenzuela admitted that in operating the DME companies,...
Össur becomes exclusive bracing sponsor for OAAA
May 13, 2025HME News Staff
IRVINE, Calif. – Össur, a global leader in non-invasive orthopaedic bracing and supports technologies, is increasing its role in supporting health care professionals and patients suffering from osteoarthritis by partnering with the Osteoarthritis Action Alliance (OAAA) as a gold sponsor. Össur’s partnership with OAAA will include providing a comprehensive set of OACareTools to help health care professionals support their OA patients, including the latest clinical guidelines,...
Florida man convicted of $10.9M in brace fraud
May 1, 2025HME News Staff
TAMPA, Fla. – A federal jury has found Lino Mallari Gutierrez of Palm City, Fla., guilty of conspiracy to commit health care and wire fraud, conspiracy to violate the federal anti-kickback statute, five substantive counts of health care fraud and four substantive counts of payment of kickbacks in connection with a heath care program. According to testimony and evidence presented at trial, Gutierrez and his co-conspirators owned and operated two DME companies that collectively billed Medicare...
Doctor must pay $26M for fraudulent scripts for braces
March 10, 2025HME News Staff
DALLAS – Attorney General Ken Paxton’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit has secured 10 years in federal prison and $26.6 million in restitution for Dr. David M. Young of Fredericksburg, Texas, who was sentenced for his role in a scheme to defraud government health care programs by prescribing DME and genetic tests without seeing treating patients. Young signed thousands of fraudulent prescriptions and medical records for unnecessary orthotic braces and cancer genetic testing for more than...