A podiatrist and a patient recruiter have been sentenced for their involvement in a fraudulent scheme that billed TRICARE, the health care program for U.S. service members and their families, $8.5 million for unnecessary compounded creams. Brian Carpenter, 58, from Paradise, Texas, received a 45-month prison sentence while Jerry Lee Hawrylak, 71, from Lake Worth, Texas, was sentenced to 60 months. Both were ordered to pay over $7 million in restitution.
Court documents revealed that Carpenter signed prescriptions for compounded pain and scar creams without ever consulting or treating the TRICARE beneficiaries involved. Hawrylak recruited Carpenter to sign these prescriptions and also recruited beneficiaries to accept the unnecessary creams. From November 2014 to January 2017, they collaborated with others at a Fort Worth-based pharmacy to fraudulently bill TRICARE approximately $8.5 million.
Evidence presented during the trial included standing orders signed by Carpenter that were backdated to allow prescription changes aimed at maximizing reimbursements from TRICARE. These prescriptions authorized unlimited refills and contained fake addresses for beneficiaries.
In April 2023, both individuals were convicted by a jury in the Northern District of Texas on one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and six counts of health care fraud.
The announcement was made by Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri; Acting Special Agent in Charge Ryan Settle of DCIS Southwest Field Office; Special Agent in Charge Jason E. Meadows of HHS-OIG Dallas Regional Office; Acting Special Agent in Charge P.J. O’Brien of FBI Dallas Field Office; Special Agent in Charge Casey Howard of DOL-OIG Central Regional Office; and Special Agent in Charge Kris Raper of VA-OIG South Central Field Office.
The case was investigated by DCIS, HHS-OIG, FBI, DOL-OIG, and VA-OIG with prosecution led by Assistant Chief Brynn Schiess and Trial Attorney Andrea Savdie from the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section.
The Fraud Section is part of efforts combating health care fraud through the Health Care Fraud Strike Force Program which has charged over 5,400 defendants since March 2007 for billing more than $27 billion from federal programs and private insurers.
More information can be found at www.justice.gov/criminal-fraud/health-care-fraud-unit.
