Cape Girardeau woman sentenced in federal court for fraud

A federal judge in Cape Girardeau has sentenced Brandy McKay, 42, of Cape Girardeau to three years imprisonment and ordered her to pay $7.52 million in restitution for Medicare and Medicaid fraud.

U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Clark handed down the sentence Tuesday following a plea agreement between McKay and federal prosecutors.

According to the agreement, between 2017 and 2019, McKay owned or managed multiple durable medical equipment (DME) companies, including three located in Cape Girardeau.

The DME firms paid kickbacks for orders and prescriptions signed by telemedicine physicians and nurse practitioners, who in almost all cases did not examine the patients, had no contact with them, and did not otherwise determine those individuals even needed such equipment.

The most common forms of durable medical equipment used outside of a hospital include kidney machines, prostheses, oxygen monitors and ventilators, bath chairs, commodes, walkers, canes, crutches, wheelchairs, hospital beds and pressure mattresses.

McKay's companies then submitted reimbursement claims to Medicare and Medicaid.

In many cases, according to a release from the U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Missouri, patients received DME equipment from several companies -- none of which they had requested or needed.

"Submitting false claims for medically unnecessary equipment diverts funding from the necessary services required to support beneficiaries of federal health care programs," stated Curt L. Muller, Special Agent in Charge with the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General.

"OIG will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to identify and hold accountable individuals who choose to waste vital taxpayer dollars by participating in health care fraud schemes."

This case was investigated by the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector General, the U. S. Department of Defense, Defense Criminal Investigative Services and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.