(COLUMBUS, Ohio) — A Columbus physician and his medical clinic were found guilty today of overbilling Medicaid by $1.5 million, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost announced.
A Franklin County jury convicted Dr. Robert Florea and his company, Buckeye Health and Research, each of one count of Medicaid fraud, a third-degree felony. Both defendants were indicted in December 2022.
Investigators with Yost’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit determined that Florea, through his clinic at 65 Highview Blvd., billed the Ohio Department of Medicaid for medical equipment – including braces for joints and back pain – that he never purchased.
Florea claimed reimbursement for more than 5,100 pieces of equipment over a three-year period, but records show he bought only 460 of the items. The fraudulent claims caused a $1.5 million loss to the Medicaid program.
A sentencing date for Florea has yet to be scheduled. The Health Care Fraud Section of the Attorney General’s Office prosecuted the case in Franklin County Common Pleas Court.
The Ohio Medicaid Fraud Control Unit receives 75% of its funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under a grant award totaling $15,343,488 for federal fiscal year (FFY) 2025. The remaining 25% – totaling $5,114,493 for FY 2025 – is funded by the Ohio Attorney General’s Office.
MEDIA CONTACT:
Dominic Binkley: 614-728-4127
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