A Nigerian national, Ifeanyi Ozoh, has been sentenced to six years in a U.S. federal prison for his involvement in a $6 million Medicaid bribery scheme. The 54-year-old was found guilty of conspiracy and payment of healthcare kickbacks after a swift deliberation by a federal jury on February 14, 2024.
The sentencing, delivered by U.S. District Chief Judge Randy Crane on November 13, includes 72 months of imprisonment followed by three years of supervised release. Ozoh was also ordered to pay $4.9 million in restitution to Medicaid.
Prosecutors revealed that Ozoh played a key role in orchestrating the fraudulent scheme during his tenure at Floss Family Dentalcare Center from January 2020 to February 2021. He bribed marketers with cash payments ranging from $20 to $100 for each Medicaid-insured child they referred to the clinic. These payments were made covertly, often placed atop vending machines to avoid detection.
The court learned that Ozoh ignored warnings from a clinic manager about the illegality of his actions. Evidence presented at the trial showed that he disbursed over $163,000 in bribes to marketers while earning bonuses for hitting patient quotas.
Over the course of the scheme, Floss Family Dentalcare Center submitted fraudulent claims to Medicaid exceeding $6 million, receiving over $4 million in reimbursements. Most of these claims were linked to kickback-driven referrals or services that were never rendered.
The investigation, led by the FBI, Texas Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, and the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General, exposed the extent of the fraudulent activities.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kathryn Olson and Lauren Valenti, who prosecuted the case, emphasized that Medicaid strictly prohibits kickbacks for medical service referrals, a policy Ozoh flagrantly violated.
Ozoh has been allowed to remain on bond and will surrender to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility at a later date.
