Group charged in scheme to defraud Medicare

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) -- Two doctors and several businessmen have been charged in a multimillion-dollar scheme to bill Medicare for expensive motorized wheelchairs for patients who did not need or receive them, authorities said Friday.
Four men who owned or operated medical supply businesses were charged in a federal criminal complaint filed Monday and unsealed Thursday. They are accused of defrauding Medicare of more than $2.3 million.
Filing fraudulent Medicare claims for wheelchairs has become increasingly common in recent years. Reimbursements can amount to thousands of dollars per wheelchair.