A grand jury in the Northern District of Alabama on Tuesday passed down a criminal indictment of Phillip Anthony Minga of Mississippi, charging him with alleged wire and health care fraud and conspiracy to commit the two unlawful acts.
The indictment alleged that former pharmacy operator Minga, beginning around October 2016 through at least September 2019, operated a scheme to defraud federal health care benefit programs through use of interstate wire transmissions.
Minga previously pleaded guilty to wire fraud in 2010 related to the sale of insurance, according to the indictment. Subsequently, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) excluded Minga’s medical equipment supplier, Medpoint, from being able to participate in Medicare for 10 years because Minga failed to notify the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services of his conviction. The HHS Office of Inspector General (OIG) retains the authority to bar medical providers or those supplying medical products and services from being able to submit claims for Medicare if they fail to disclose such information.
According to the indictment, Minga never stopped submitting claims to Medicare and Medicare drug plan sponsors for reimbursement of millions of dollars, using his involvement with pharmacies such as Bowie’s Priority Care Pharmacy LLC and Vickers Pharmacy to submit the claims.
“Once excluded, an individual may not serve in an executive or leadership role at a provider that furnishes items or services payable by Medicare,” the indictment said, claiming that Minga remained in ownership or managerial positions at the aforementioned pharmacies after his Medicare exclusion.
The indictment mentioned that other unknown individuals may have been involved in the alleged conspiracy with Minga.
According to a Department of Justice news release, Minga faces up to 20 years in prison for the alleged wire fraud and 10 for the alleged health care fraud, plus a $250,000 fine, if he is convicted.
The HHS OIG, Mississippi’s Office of the Attorney General, and Alabama’s State Board of Pharmacy investigated the case, and assistant U.S. Attorneys Lloyd Peeples and Don Long are prosecuting.
