Racketeering: First the Mafia, Now Medicaid
When many people hear the word “racketeering,” they automatically think of the mob or gang-related cases. For a long time, that was precisely the target of racketeering indictments. The federal racketeering statute, called the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (a.k.a. “RICO”), was enacted by President Nixon in the 1970s to prosecute the Mafia and similar crime organizations.
Simply put, the federal criminal RICO statute prohibits anyone:
who has received any income derived from participating in a pattern of racketeering activity from using or investing such income into an enterprise engaged in interstate commerce
from acquiring or maintaining interest or control of an enterprise through a pattern of racketeering activity
employed by or associated with an enterprise from participating in the enterprise’s affairs through a pattern of racketeering activity
from conspiring to do any of the above
A “pattern of racketeering activity” means engaging in two or more “racketeering activities” which could include (but are not limited to) murder, kidnapping, bribery, threats, drug trafficking, counterfeiting, theft, fraud, embezzlement, and many other offenses. In other words, a pattern of crime.
An “enterprise” is defined by the statute as “any individual, partnership, corporation, association, or other legal entity, and any union or group of individuals associated in fact although not a legal entity.”
Essentially, the statute is meant to stop people from doing things to further the goals of a criminal organization. There are additional civil/monetary penalties for engaging in racketeering activity.
States have enacted their own version of the RICO statute, modeled after the RICO Act. Florida’s RICO statute, § 895.03, mirrors the federal statute. One major difference between the two is that the federal statute provides that the most recent racketeering activity must have taken place in the last ten years, while the Florida statute provides that it must have occurred in the last five years. The list of enumerated offenses that constitute “racketeering activity” under Florida law can be found here.
Recently, Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody has been wielding the Florida RICO statute to prosecute Medicaid fraud. Through her Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, AG Moody has been indicting healthcare professionals with RICO, claiming that they fraudulently billed Medicaid for services that were either not provided or were not medically necessary. Basically, the State argues that the “enterprise” is the medical practice itself, and that the healthcare providers are “members” of that “enterprise.”
The crimes alleged — fraud, money laundering, and kickbacks — are already crimes on their own. The government could chose to simply indict the individuals on those crimes. What’s happening is that the government is indicting RICO on top of those other crimes, not instead of those other crimes, significantly increasing the maximum penalty exposure, civil penalty exposure, and the amount of money the individual might need to post a bond and avoid pre-trial incarceration. This in turn coerces individuals to plead guilty, even if they’re not, in order to minimize their exposure in case the jury gets it wrong at trial.
The State also seizes all bank accounts associated with the medical practice right after the charges are filed, making it nearly impossible for the practice to keep running and for patients to receive care, without the accused even being convicted of a single crime. That means the practice’s other, uncharged staff members—such as nurses, technicians, and administrative staff—can lose their jobs based on allegations alone.
If you or a loved one are under investigation for federal or Florida RICO, or have been charged and are looking for representation, contact Altonaga Law for a free, confidential consultation.
This blog post does not constitute legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship, nor should it be construed as such.
