12th Question of the Day August 1, 2014 Anyone remember this prosecution regarding compounding? Is this the type of criminal prosecutions we will see in the near future regarding illegal activity relating to compounding pharmacies? In 2002, this fraud cost the taxpayers $15 million? Wonder what the cost of the fraudlent activity today is?

Two physicians, two licensed pharmacists, and four pharmacy and durable medical equipment (DME) owners were convicted in the largest Medicare fraud conspiracy trial in the Southern District of Florida. As part of the conspiracy, the defendants paid patients for their Medicare cards and for signing blank delivery receipts without receiving any medication. The physician defendants issued fraudulent prescriptions to the patients, ordered unnecessary tests, medical equipment and medication, and thereafter the DME defendants forwarded the prescriptions to co-conspirator pharmacies and submitted false bills to Medicare in excess of $15 million for medication and medical equipment that was never delivered. Additionally, the pharmacist and pharmacy owner defendants, who were unwilling to buy expensive medications approved by the FDA in the volumes necessary to fill prescriptions, manufactured unnecessary, non-FDA approved medications through a process called "compounding," and provided the DME companies with documentation reflecting full deliveries of FDA-approved medications even though "compounded" medications were supplied and often times only half or none of the medication was actually delivered to the DME companies. Following a 5 ½ month trial, a jury convicted the eight defendants of conspiracy to defraud the United States and additionally convicted one defendant of filing false claims, paying kickbacks, and conspiracy to commit money laundering; a second defendant of paying kickbacks; and a third defendant of filing false claims and paying kickbacks. Eighteen co-defendants entered guilty pleas prior to trial. 

quoted from here