Women get probation in fraud scheme

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Two women from western Pennsylvania have been sentenced to three years’ probation for helping to defraud an insurance company out of hundreds of thousands of dollars with the help of a chiropractor.

A judge also ordered 50-year-old Judith Williamson of Pittsburgh to repay Highmark Blue Cross/Blue Shield more than $316,000.

Fifty-six-year-old Marilyn Marshall of Murrysville was ordered to repay nearly $140,000.

Both women pleaded guilty to federal charges of health care fraud.

Prosecutors say from 1996 to 2002, the two women cooperated with a chiropractor who submitted false claims totaling more than $456,000 to the insurance company.

Prosecutors say the unidentified chiropractor paid Williamson $46,500 for her cooperation and paid Marshall more than $58,000.