The Federal investigation into WellCare’s Florida Medicaid operations has hung over the company for nearly a year. Perhaps there’s some light at the end of the tunnel.
Former WellCare employee Gregory West has pled guilty to conspiracy to defraud the Florida Medicaid program, according to Justice Dept. documents released yesterday. He faces up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Plus, West has agreed to help finger others involved in the conspiracy in hopes of leniency in sentencing.
Specifically, West admitted that he participated in a conspiracy to falsely inflate behavioral health expenditures covered by the Florida Medicaid program. The fraud resulting in more than $20 million in excess funds for WellCare from 2002 to 2006, the documents said; West’s participation began in 2004.
The guilty plea, which was entered into in December, and the $20 million figure appear to limit WellCare’s overall exposure to the investigation. That’s been a big question for industry observers attempting to assess how damaging this whole investigation would be to the company.
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