Legal Guide

Insurance Fraud

The Law Office of John R. Teakell in Dallas, Texas, is a valuable resource for patients or health care providers who have been charged with insurance fraud in Texas. Typical scenarios of insurance fraud include the following:

• Presenting false information in connection with claims for benefits
• Submitting falsified or undocumented claims for Medicaid or Medicare reimbursement
• Obtaining insurance through fraudulent misrepresentation on applications for insurance
• Presenting claims for repair or replacement of real properties that were deliberately destroyed by the insured consumer by way of arson

If you have been charged with insurance fraud in Texas, you are strongly encouraged to contact a lawyer right away. Attorney John Teakell is a former federal prosecutor who understands the importance of the lawyer’s role in defending someone (either a health care provider or patient) who has been charged with health care fraud.

Health care fraud often falls under the umbrella of mail fraud or wire fraud as defined by federal statutes. It is the obligation of the prosecution to prove that a defendant is guilty as charged. It is the role of the defense attorney to protect the accused from unfounded or inadequately documented claims of criminal behavior including fraud.

The Law Office of John R, Teakell has achieved positive results on behalf of a number of clients facing fraud charges. Depending on the strength of the government’s case, these results may be a dismissal of the charges, an acquittal at trial, or a reduction in the penalties. Before seeking any type of plea agreement, Attorney Teakell will fully review the evidence and make sure that the government will be able to prove their case.

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), signed by President Clinton in 1996, targets fraud in federal programs such as Medicare as well as in private health care, defining the crime of health care fraud to mean “knowingly and willfully” defrauding any health care benefit program. It also names as federal crimes the following: making false statements “in any matter involving a health care benefit program,” theft or embezzlement, obstruction of investigations and money laundering.