A Lakeland woman pleaded guilty this afternoon to federal charges she fraudulently billed Medicare for physical therapy services.
Lilian Pagkaliwangan and her husband, Raymundo P. Arellano, operators of Lakeland Therapy Providers Inc. and Optimum Therapy Inc., were indicted in January, accused of committing the fraud between April 2006 and June 2008.
The indictment says the couple submitted claims for services not rendered, including services that were purportedly rendered on days the patients were not at the couple's clinic and didn't receive any services.
As part of a plea agreement, Pagkaliwangan will forfeit $319,000 in assets, representing the gross proceeds of the fraud. However, the intended loss was higher, as Pagkaliwangan overbilled for more than the amount she was paid.
Specifically, she is pleading guilty to six counts of making false statements in connection with health care benefits. Each charge carries up to five years in federal prison.
According to the plea agreement, Pagkaliwangan "understands that the government's proofs establish the complicity of her husband...However, the defendant wishes to address only her own criminal liability in this agreement and to refrain from addressing her husband's conduct."
Pagkaliwangan used several methods to defraud Medicare, including billing for services performed on days patients were not present at the clinic and billing for more service than was provided to particular patients.
The investigation was conducted by a regional task force of federal and local agencies formed to combat Medicare fraud established by the Department of Justice and the Department of Health and Human Services.
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