63-year-old sent to prison for healthcare conspiracy, billed Medicare for fraudulent services
HOUSTON - One Houston-area woman was sentenced to prison for a reported healthcare scam.
63-year-old Joyce Agu from Sugar Land was ordered to 60 months in prison for conspiracy to pay and receive kickbacks, said U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani.
Agu pleaded guilty to the charges on Oct. 17, 2022, and admitted she paid others to certify her clients for home health services to bill Medicare for services the beneficiaries did not qualify for and in some cases did not even receive.
On Wednesday, the court heard additional information about Agu's family and charitable contributions but U.S. District Judge Randy Crane was said to consider how extensive the fraudulent scheme was and the millions that were siphoned from the Medicare program.
Medicare reportedly paid Agu's companies more than $3 million based on the fraudulent claims.
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She was allowed to remain on bond and voluntarily surrender to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future, officials say.
The Department of Health and Human Services - Office of Inspector General, FBI and Texas Attorney General’s - Office Medicaid Fraud Control Unit conducted the joint investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Rodolfo Ramirez and Grace Murphy prosecuted the case.