Coeur d’Alene, Idaho-based physician David Antonio Becerril, MD, has been sentenced to 40 months in prison for his role in a telehealth-linked scheme that defrauded Medicare, according to the Department of Justice.
Chief U.S. District Judge Stanley A. Bastian of the Eastern District of Washington also ordered Dr. Becerril, 70, to pay $1.25 million in restitution — the full amount prosecutors say Medicare paid out as a result of the scheme — plus a $37,340 forfeiture representing his direct profit, followed by three years of supervised release. A jury convicted him in September 2025 on 16 felony counts, including conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, and false statements relating to healthcare matters.
Prosecutors said that between February 2018 and September 2019, Dr. Becerril signed fraudulent orders for genetic tests and durable medical equipment — including back, knee, shoulder and ankle braces — for Medicare beneficiaries he never treated or spoke with by telehealth or otherwise. He worked with telemedicine and telemarketing company Real Time Physicians, which billed Medicare $4.1 million for his fraudulent orders and paid him $20 per prescription, according to the 2023 indictment. He reviewed each order for an average of 26 seconds before certifying it as medically necessary, according to trial evidence.
“Today’s sentencing reflects the seriousness of Dr. Becerril’s long-running scheme to defraud the taxpayer-funded Medicare program,” said Robb Breeden, special agent in charge of the HHS Office of Inspector General’s Pacific Regional Office, in a news release.
The case underscores continued federal scrutiny of telehealth-linked durable medical equipment fraud schemes targeting elderly Medicare beneficiaries.
Editor’s note: Becker’s reached out to the defense team for comment and will update the story if they respond.
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