Federal Jury Convicts Psychologist for False Billings to Medicare/Medicaid

JACKSON, TN—Lorne Allan Semrau, 64, of Jackson, Tennessee, was convicted by a federal jury on June 17, 2010, for three counts of submitting false and fraudulent claims to defraud health care benefits programs such as Medicare and Medicaid in Tennessee and Mississippi announced Lawrence J. Laurenzi, United States Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee. The three-week trial was held before United States District Court Chief Judge Jon P. McCalla in Jackson. Sentencing is set for September 9, 2010.

Semrau was indicted in June 2007 and at that time was the Owner, President, and CEO of Superior Life Care Services and Foundation Life Care Services. According to the indictment, Semrau contracted with nursing homes in Tennessee and Mississippi to provide medication and mental health services to residents. Semrau then allegedly contracted with psychiatrists to perform the medication and mental health services pursuant to the nursing home contracts. As stated in the indictment, Semrau then implemented a billing scheme to defraud Medicare, Medicaid, and others by submitting, through his companies Superior and Foundation, claims for services that were not provided by the physicians and claims which Semrau knew to be false. Between 1999 and 2005 Semrau submitted fraudulent billings to health care benefit programs in excess of $3,000,000.

The health care fraud charges carry a penalty of not more than ten (10) years' imprisonment, $250,000.00 fine, with three years' supervised release and a special assessment of fine $100 per count.

This indictment follows an investigation by the United States Attorney’s Health Care Fraud Task Force in the Western District of Tennessee. Special Agents of the Department of Health and Human Services-Office of the Inspector General, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation-Medicaid Fraud Control Unit conducted this investigation. Assistant United States Attorneys Stuart J. Canale and Kevin Whitmore are handling the case for the United States.