U.S. Department of Labor OIG, 6 Physical Therapists And 2 Acupuncturists Charged In Over $20 Million Health Care Fraud Scheme (USAO SD-NY 09/28/2021) (2021-10-04)
Summary
A September 28, 2021 press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York announcing an unsealed indictment against acupuncturists Junyi Liu and Hongxing Wang, physical therapists Gleen Anciro, Noemi Algodon, Mohamed Elmandouh, Gerard Estrella, Ramon Garcia III and Henler Datu Tahil, and cashier Zihao Chen. The indictment alleges an over $20 million health care fraud scheme at medical offices in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens, with cash kickbacks to patients and billing of Medicare and other insurers for services not rendered. Liu is also charged over false applications for COVID-19 unemployment benefits to the New York Department of Labor. Each defendant faces conspiracy charges for health care fraud, the Anti-Kickback Statute and money laundering. The release states the charges are merely accusations.
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“U.S. Department of Labor OIG, 6 Physical Therapists And 2 Acupuncturists Charged In Over $20 Million Health Care Fraud Scheme (USAO SD-NY 09/28/2021) (2021-10-04).”
Original at www.oig.dol.gov. Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/u-s-department-of-labor-oig-6-physical-therapists-and-2-acupuncturists-fa45c0ef95/
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Department of Justice
U.S. Attorney’s Office
Southern District of New York
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Tuesday, September 28, 2021
6 Physical Therapists And 2 Acupuncturists Charged In Over
$20 Million Health Care Fraud Scheme
Leader of Scheme Also Charged with Fraudulently Obtaining COVID-19
Unemployment Benefits
Audrey Strauss, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Scott
Lampert, Special Agent in Charge of the New York Office of the U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services, Office of Inspector General (“HHS-OIG”), announced the unsealing today of an
indictment charging acupuncturists JUNYI LIU, a/k/a “Jenny,” and HONGXING WANG, as well as
physical therapists GLEEN ANCIRO, NOEMI ALGODON, MOHAMED ELMANDOUH, GERARD
ESTRELLA, RAMON GARCIA III, and HENLER DATU TAHIL, and cashier ZIHAO CHEN with
operating an over $20 million health care fraud scheme at fraudulent medical offices in Manhattan,
Brooklyn, and Queens. As part of the fraud scheme, CHEN and other of the defendants’ co-
conspirators paid cash kickbacks to patients (the “Paid Patients”) who were insured by Medicare
and/or other insurance providers (collectively, the “Insurance Providers”), and the defendants and
their co-conspirators then billed Medicare and the insurance providers for physical therapy and
acupuncture services related to the Paid Patients that were unnecessary or never performed. LIU
was additionally charged with unlawfully enriching herself and a family member through a COVID-
19 unemployment benefit scheme.
The defendants were arrested earlier today and will be presented this afternoon before U.S.
Magistrate Judge Gabriel W. Gorenstein. The case is assigned to Chief U.S. District Judge Laura
Taylor Swain.
U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss said: “As alleged, the defendants perpetrated a multimillion-dollar
health care fraud scheme in which they billed Medicare and other insurers for physical therapy and
acupuncture services that were either not rendered in the manner purported or not rendered at
all. Large-scale insurance frauds of the type alleged here impose hidden but very real costs on the
public as well as insurers. Thanks to our partners in this case, the defendants are in custody and
facing serious federal charges.”
HHS Special Agent in Charge Scott Lampert said: “These allegations describe a greed-fueled scheme
that undermined our health care system and the people it serves. Health care providers participating
in the Medicare program are trusted to furnish medically necessary services and to make
beneficiaries collaborators in their care, not conspirators in fraud. HHS-OIG and our law
enforcement partners proudly work to protect federal health care funds by identifying and quelling
fraudulent billing of providers.”
According to the allegations contained in the Indictment[1] and statements made during court
proceedings:
Between 2018 and 2021, LIU, a licensed acupuncturist, operated medical offices (the “Offices”) from
which LIU and her partners fraudulently billed the Insurance Providers for physical therapy and
acupuncture services that were not rendered in the manner represented or not rendered at
all. During the scheme, LIU partnered with other licensed medical professionals, including
ANCIRO, ALGODON, ELMANDOUH, ESTRELLA, GARCIA, and TAHIL, all of whom were licensed
physical therapists, and WANG, who was a licensed acupuncturist (collectively, the “Partners”). The
Partners’ roles in the scheme typically included: (i) allowing the Offices to use their enrollments with
the Insurance Providers to submit to the Insurance Providers materially false and fraudulent claims
for reimbursement for physical therapy and acupuncture services that were not rendered in the
manner represented or were not rendered at all; (ii) creating materially false medical documentation,
which stated that certain physical therapy and acupuncture services had been rendered, when such
services in fact were not rendered in the manner represented or were not rendered at all; and (iii)
contributing financing for the Offices, including for the payment of cash kickbacks to the Paid
Patients to induce those patients to provide their insurance information and receive medically
unnecessary and/or non-existent services at the Offices. LIU and certain of the Partners also agreed
to give kickbacks, including cash and expensive wine, to employees of Insurance Providers to enable
the scheme to continue.
In furtherance of the scheme, LIU employed receptionists, cashiers, marketers, financial and billing
personnel, acupuncturists, massagists, and other personnel. The cashiers included CHEN, who on
numerous occasions distributed tens of thousands of dollars in cash kickbacks to the Paid
Patients. In some instances, these Paid Patients visited the Offices, signed in, and received
unnecessary physical therapy and acupuncture services. In other instances, the Paid Patients visited
the Offices, signed a sign-in sheet and other documents, and then left without receiving any services
at all. In yet other instances, the Paid Patients did not visit the Offices at all and instead signed sign-
in sheets and other documents brought to them elsewhere. Regardless of whether the Paid Patients
received any services or even visited the Offices at all, the Partners used the Paid Patients’ insurance
information to fraudulently bill the Insurance Providers for unnecessary and/or never rendered
services.
While LIU and her Partners were defrauding the Insurance Providers of millions of dollars, from
April 2020 through September 2021, LIU also engaged in a scheme to obtain COVID-19
unemployment benefits for herself and a family member (the “Family Member”) by fraudulently
submitting and causing to be submitted to the New York Department of Labor materially false online
applications and certifications for COVID-19 benefits. Among other things, the applications and/or
certifications represented that LIU was unemployed when, in fact, she continued to operate the
Offices for all or nearly all of this period, and that LIU’s Family Member was unable to work because
of COVID-19 during a five-month period when the Family Member was in China.
* * *
JUNYI LIU, 67, of Great Neck, New York, GLEEN ANCIRO, 50, of Floral Park, New York, NOEMI
ALGODON, 49, of Mineola, New York, MOHAMED ELMANDOUH, 48, of Staten Island, New York,
GERARD ESTRELLA, 39, of West Hempstead, New York, RAMON GARCIA III, 39, of Merrick, New
York, HENLER DATU TAHIL, 38, of East Meadow, New York, HONGXING WANG, 61, of Brooklyn,
and ZIHAO CHEN, 20, of Queens, are each charged with: (1) conspiring to commit health care fraud,
which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison; (2) conspiring to violate the Anti-Kickback
Statute, which has a maximum penalty of five years in prison; and (3) conspiring to commit money
laundering, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. LIU is also charged with wire
fraud, which has a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, and theft of Government funds, which
has a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.
The statutory maximum sentences are prescribed by Congress and provided here for informational
purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendants would be determined by the judge.
Ms. Strauss praised the outstanding investigative work of HHS-OIG’s New York Office and the New
York Field Office of the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation. Ms. Strauss also thanked
the New York State Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit and the U.S. Department of
Labor, Office of Inspector General, for their assistance.
The prosecution of this case is being handled by the Office’s Complex Frauds and Cybercrime
Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy V. Capozzi is in charge of the prosecution.
The charges contained in the Indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed
innocent unless and until proven guilty.
[1] As the introductory phrase signifies, the entirety of the text of the Indictment and the description
of the Indictment set forth in this release constitute only allegations, and every fact described should
be treated as an allegation.
Attachment(s): Component(s):
Download U.S. v. Junyi Liu indictment (21-cr- USAO - New York, Southern
592)
Contact:
Topic(s): james.margolin@usdoj.gov
Coronavirus nicholas.biase@usdoj.gov
Health Care Fraud
(212) 637-2600
Press Release Number:
21-257
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