A physician and two pharmacists in Texas were charged in connection to a six-year, $170 million healthcare fraud case, the Justice Department said Sept. 26.
Court documents allege that from 2016 to 2022, 45-year-old physician Lashondria Simpson-Camp, MD, referred prescriptions to two Houston pharmacies owned by her twin sister, Shalondria Simpson, in exchange for kickbacks. The third defendant, Shayla Bryant, 38, is a pharmacist and business manager of the two pharmacies.
The three allegedly paid and transferred bribes through shell entities, cash and a cryptocurrency wallet. If convicted, the three face five years in prison for conspiracy to defraud the U.S. and pay and receive health care kickbacks, and 10 years in prison for conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud. Ms. Simpson also faces 20 years for conspiracy to launder money instruments, 10 years for each of five counts of money laundering and 10 years for each of five counts of paying healthcare kickbacks. Ms. Bryant also faces a maximum of 10 years in prison for one count of paying healthcare kickbacks.