Louisiana Man Pleads Guilty to $3.8 Million Durable Medical Equipment Fraud Scheme

A Louisiana man pleaded guilty today in connection with a five-year scheme to submit millions of dollars in fraudulent claims to Medicare for expensive and medically unnecessary medical equipment.

According to court documents, Michael L. Riggins, 62, of West Monroe, Louisiana, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud for his role in a durable medical equipment (DME) scheme. Riggins was the owner of Bluewater Healthcare (Bluewater), a DME supply company in West Monroe. From 2018 to 2023, Riggins paid for doctors’ orders for medically unnecessary DME and tricked doctors into signing DME orders and certificates of medical necessity in order to bill for it. Despite receiving hundreds of complaints regarding the fraudulent orders, Riggins submitted over $3.8 million in fraudulent claims to Medicare for supplying the DME and was reimbursed over $1.8 million.

Riggins is scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 2 and faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Matthew R. Galeotti, Head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook for the Western District of Louisiana; and Deputy Inspector General for Investigations Christian J. Schrank of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG) made the announcement.

HHS-OIG is investigating the case.

Trial Attorneys Samantha Usher and Kelly Z. Walters of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Robin McCoy for the Western District of Louisiana are prosecuting the case.

The Fraud Section leads the Criminal Division’s efforts to combat health care fraud through the Health Care Fraud Strike Force Program. Since March 2007, this program, currently comprised of nine strike forces operating in 27 federal districts, has charged more than 5,800 defendants who collectively have billed federal health care programs and private insurers more than $30 billion. In addition, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with HHS-OIG, are taking steps to hold providers accountable for their involvement in health care fraud schemes. More information can be found at www.justice.gov/criminal-fraud/health-care-fraud-unit.