Richmond Woman Convicted of Health Care Fraud and Filing False Tax Return

RICHMOND, VA—Veronica Sharon Cunningham, 49, of Richmond, Virginia, was convicted today by a federal jury on 26 counts of health care fraud, eight counts of making false statements on patient health care records, and a single count of filing a false tax return.

Neil H. MacBride, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; Michael F.A. Morehart, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Richmond Division; Eric Hylton, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Washington Field Office of the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation; Nick DiGiulio, Special Agent in Charge, United States Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General, Office of Investigations; and Michael McGill, Special Agent in Charge, Social Security Administration-Office of Inspector General, made the announcement after the verdict was accepted by United States District Judge Robert E. Payne.

Cunningham faces 10 years for each health care fraud count, five years for each false statement count, and three years for the false tax return count when she is sentenced on May 31, 2012.

Cunningham was indicted on these charges on October 4, 2011. According to court records and evidence at trial, Cunningham owned and operated Community Neurological Services (CNS), a Richmond business that administered intravenous immune globulin (IVIG) to patients suffering from immune deficiency disorders. Cunningham regularly and systematically billed insurance companies and the Medicare and Medicaid programs for IVIG not actually administered and made other false entries in patient records. She also falsely underreported the gross income of CNS by over $1 million in her 2005 tax return.

This case was investigated by Federal Bureau of Investigation, Department of Health and Human Services-Office of Inspector General, Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation Division, and Social Security Administration-Office of Inspector General. Assistant United States Attorney Michael C. Moore and Trial Attorney Maria Gonzalez Calvet of the Fraud Section in the Justice Department’s Criminal Division are prosecuting the case on behalf of the United States.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia at http://www.justice.gov/usao/vae. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia at http://www.vaed.uscourts.gov or on https://pcl.uscourts.gov.