Former Owner of Telemedicine Companies Sentenced to Two Years in Prison for $110 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme

BOSTON – The former owner of Expansion Media (Expansion) and Hybrid Management Group (Hybrid) was sentenced today in federal court in Boston for a $110 million telemedicine fraud scheme involving medically unnecessary durable medical equipment (DME), including orthotics such as back and knee braces. Steven Richardson, 42, of Port St. Lucie, Fla., was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton to two years in prison, to be followed by two years of supervised release. In April 2024, Richardson pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud. Richardson was charged in February 2024. Between March 2016 and January 2023, Richardson, through his companies Expansion and Hybrid, entered into business relationships with telemarketing companies that generated leads by targeting Medicare beneficiaries. The telemarketers then paid Expansion and Hybrid on a per-order basis to generate orders for DME for these beneficiaries. To arrange for these orders to be signed, Richardson worked with medical staffing companies—including one in Massachusetts—to find doctors and nurses who were willing to review and sign prepopulated orders, typically without any contact with the beneficiaries. The records falsely portrayed the medical providers as having performed a legitimate examination of the beneficiary. Richardson then provided the signed orders to the telemarketing companies, which sold the orders to DME suppliers. Richardson knew that these DME suppliers would use the signed orders to submit claims to Medicare for DME that was medically unnecessary, based on false documentation and tainted by kickbacks. United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Roberto Coviello, Special Agent in Charge at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General; Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigations, Boston Division; Justin Page, Acting Inspector in Charge, United States Postal Inspection Service, Boston Division; Kelly M. Lawson, Acting Regional Director, U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration, Boston Regional Office; and Jessica Herrington, Special Agent in Charge, Defense Criminal Investigation Service, Northeast Field Office made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alexandra Brazier and Lindsey Ross of the Affirmative Civil Enforcement Unit prosecuted the case.