Two South Florida Men Indicted in $34.8M Medicare Durable Medical Equipment Fraud Scheme

Two South Florida men, Kenneth Charles Kessler III and Michael Andrew Gomez, have been federally indicted for orchestrating a $34.8 million Medicare fraud scheme involving durable medical equipment companies. They allegedly submitted false claims for medically unnecessary products such as orthotic braces and continuous glucose monitors. The scheme included paying illegal kickbacks to marketing companies that used deceptive telemarketing tactics to target Medicare beneficiaries and coordinating telemedicine providers to produce fraudulent doctors' orders.

The defendants face multiple charges including conspiracy to commit health care and wire fraud, health care fraud, and offering and paying kickbacks related to a federal health care program. If convicted, they face up to 65 years in prison. This case highlights ongoing regulatory and compliance challenges in Medicare durable medical equipment billing and the need for stringent oversight to prevent payer fraud.