Local physician indicted in $30 million COVID-19 fraud scheme
Summary
A release from Houston says Dr. Joseph A. Montes, a 66-year-old Houston physician, was taken into custody and made an initial appearance after a 12-count indictment returned Sept. 30 was unsealed. The indictment alleges that between 2020 and 2022 Montes and others submitted false claims to the Health Resources and Services Administration for office visits that were never provided, while co-conspirators ran pop-up COVID-19 testing sites under the physician's name. Montes's two clinics allegedly submitted thousands of impossible claims, including more than 9,000 on Dec. 1, 2021, roughly one patient visit every nine seconds over 24 hours. The agency was allegedly billed approximately $30 million and paid approximately $20 million. If convicted, Montes faces up to five years for conspiracy, 20 years for each wire fraud count and 10 years for each money laundering count.
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Full text
HOUSTON – A 66-year-old Houston physician is accused of participating in a scheme that fraudulently billed the federal government millions of dollars for medical services that were never provided. Authorities have now taken Dr. Joseph A. Montes into custody. He made his initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Christina Bryan at 10 a.m. today. A federal grand jury returned a 12-count indictment Sept. 30, which is now unsealed. It alleges that between 2020 and 2022, Montes and others submitted false and fraudulent claims to the Department of Health and Human Services’ Health Resources and Services Administration for office visits that were never provided. According to court documents, Montes owned and operated two Houston clinics: Joseph A. Montes MD & Associates, P.A. and Montes Medical PLLC. He allegedly allowed co-conspirators to operate pop-up COVID-19 testing sites under his name. Patients visited the sites for nasal swab testing, while the co-conspirators allegedly billed HSRA for office visits. The indictment further alleges Montes’s clinics submitted thousands of impossible claims. On approximately 29 dates, they submitted more than 3,000 claims for evaluation and management services. On Dec. 1, 2021, they allegedly submitted more than 9,000 claims in a single day—roughly one patient visit every nine seconds over a 24-hour period. From 2020 to 2022, Montes and others allegedly billed HSRA approximately $30 million, of which HSRA paid approximately $20 million. Montes allegedly used proceeds from the scheme to make expensive purchases at a luxury car dealership and Tiffany & Co. If convicted, Montes faces up to five years in federal prison for the conspiracy charge, 20 years for each wire fraud count, and 10 years for each money laundering count. He also faces a possible $250,000 maximum fine. FBI – Houston, DHHS - Office of Inspector General, and Texas Attorney General’s Office Medicaid Fraud Control Unit conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kathryn Olson is prosecuting the case. On April 7, the Department of Justice announced the creation of the National Fraud Enforcement Division which is laser-focused on investigating and prosecuting those who commit fraud against the American people. The Department’s work to combat fraud supports President Trump’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, a whole-of-government effort chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance to eliminate fraud, waste and abuse within federal benefit programs. An indictment is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence. A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.
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