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14 from Tampa charged with patient brokering

Authorities say a loose-knit group sold patients to clinics for up to $1,000 each.

By TIM GRANT
Published March 12, 2005

TAMPA - Fourteen people, including a former Hillsborough sheriff's deputy, have been arrested in a state insurance probe that centered on medical clinics buying and selling patients for profit.

Tom Gallagher, the state's chief financial officer, described the arrests as the culmination of a two-year investigation into a scheme where patients were sold to clinics for up to $1,000 so the clinics could bill insurance companies for tens of thousands of dollars.

"This was not an organized ring," Gallagher said Friday in Tampa. "There is no ring leader, but they all worked together."

Among those arrested was former Hillsborough County Sheriff's Deputy Joseph C. Greco Jr., 42, of Tampa. Greco retired from the Sheriff's Office in March 2003.

Also arrested was Steven Prevatt, 44, a private investigator who operates an attorney hotline number for accident victims.

All 14 of those arrested were charged with one count of patient brokering, which is a third-degree felony that carries a maximum five-year prison sentence.

State officials would not release the names of patients, citing medical confidentiality laws.

Most of the patients were solicited after they were involved in auto accidents, some of which were staged, Gallagher said. Brokers would steer them to medical clinics and get $800 to $1,000 from the clinic as payment.

Clinics then made claims against motorists' Personal Injury Protection (PIP) coverage, which typically pays up to $10,000 for treatment.

Some clients were then sold for up to $200 to various diagnostic facilities that produced more fraudulent insurance claims, Gallagher said.

He said patients were not always aware of the fraud, though some benefitted from deductibles waived by clinics eager to make claims.

Gallagher said he is pushing for legislation to crack down on people who steal PIP benefits. The state offers up to $25,000 for information on patient brokering or other PIP fraud.

"It's much more lucrative to turn someone in than to collect a couple hundred dollars from a person who is trying to get you to commit fraud," he said.

Gallagher said the Division of Insurance Fraud has arrested more than 800 people associated with about $23-million worth of PIP fraud in the past five years.

"We know that the problem is a lot bigger than that," Gallagher said. "We have ongoing investigations to prove it and we're going to continue those."

Tim Grant can be reached at 813 269-5311 or at grant@sptimes.com

The 13 Tampa residents arrested and charged with one count of patient brokering each:

Juan Carlos Alvarez, 41, West Tampa Rehab Inc., 1943 W Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.

Victor H. Chery, 49, now-defunct Advantage Medical Diagnostic Inc., 1420 W Waters Ave.

Lazaro Gari, 42, administrator, United Gables Rehab, 2123 W Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.

Jeffrey S. Poritz, 55, Complete Care Clinic, 4039 W Kennedy Blvd.

Jose Ballester, 47, 1252 E. 113 St., Apt. 114. (also charged with one count of filing a false insurance claim).

Marie Degramond, 32, 2701 N 18th St. No. 1.

Robert Glaser, 47, 607 W Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. No. 103.

Joseph C. Greco Jr., 42.

Steven Prevatt, 44, 311 W Davis Blvd.

Hildys Lisa Ramos, 29, 9506 Pembroke Court.

Melissa Rodriguez, 32, 7704 Palmbrook Drive.

Vic Tipnes, 28, 5218 Bayshore Drive No. 2.

Alpa Vayas, 33, 5218 Bayshore Drive No. 2.

Henry Woolley, 24, 3828 N Lakeshore Drive, Apt. A.

[Last modified September 1, 2005, 16:06:19]