The U.S. Attorney in Louisville says 12 people, including three doctors, have been charged as part of a national crackdown on health care fraud.
The charges were part of a nationwide sweep announced by federal officials on Thursday. The sweep has led to charges against 243 people, including doctors, nurses and pharmacy owners accused of bilking Medicare and Medicaid.
The cases in the western half of Kentucky totaled about $7.8 million in false billings, according to Acting U.S Attorney John E. Kuhn Jr. The three doctors were charged in separate cases. The charges include overbilling for services and prescribing pain medications that resulted in patient deaths.
Five people were charged with operating chiropractic clinics that falsely billed health care benefit programs a total of about $5 million for injections that patients never received.
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