Brett Blackman, owner of HealthSplash, was convicted of massive Medicare fraud after prosecutors said he helped push medically unnecessary braces through sham orders and kickbacks.
A healthcare software executive at the center of a sweeping Medicare fraud case was convicted on Thursday, with federal prosecutors calling the scheme among the worst of its kind in Florida.
The U.S.. Department of Justice said Brett Blackman. 42. the owner and CEO of HealthSplash. was found guilty of conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud and wire fraud. conspiracy to pay and receive healthcare kickbacks. and conspiracy to defraud the United States and make false statements in connection with healthcare matters.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche described the case as “one of the most egregious fraud schemes in Florida history. ” saying the operation stole more than $1 billion from taxpayers. including by targeting “hundreds of thousands of Medicare beneficiaries” for products that prosecutors say were not medically necessary.. Prosecutors said the scheme coerced vulnerable patients into buying unnecessary medical equipment.
According to DOJ. Blackman and co-conspirators “aggressively targeted hundreds of thousands of Medicare beneficiaries” to obtain them to accept medically unnecessary items. including orthotic braces.. Prosecutors said they used a platform called Power Mobility Doctor Rx. LLC. known as DMERx. which HealthSplash acquired in 2017. to coordinate illegal kickbacks with telemedicine doctors and pharmacies that would then submit false Medicare bills for the items.
The government said the fraud was concealed using sham contracts and manipulated documents.. A key part of the scheme. prosecutors said. involved generating false and fraudulent doctors’ orders indicating that a doctor had examined a Medicare beneficiary.. In reality, DOJ said the doctor had little or no interaction with the patient.
Prosecutors said an undercover agent posing as a Medicare beneficiary was diverted when the agent attempted to proceed with the order. According to the DOJ, the agent was shunted to an overseas call center, where representatives pushed the agent to agree to order multiple braces.
DOJ said that although a physician’s note claimed tests were performed on the undercover agent. the agent and the doctor never met.. In addition to the convicted charges facing Blackman. he faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison for the healthcare and wire fraud counts. plus an additional five years on the other counts.. A sentencing hearing is scheduled for Aug.. 26.
The government also presented evidence aimed at portraying Blackman’s lifestyle. DOJ said he showcased his wealth in a music video, including images of a large waterfront property. A photo released by the DOJ shows Blackman posing with gold accessories, including a necklace with a large dollar sign.
The case’s broader cast includes former DMERx leadership. DOJ said Blackman and his co-defendants billed Medicare and other federal healthcare benefit programs over $1 billion during the course of the scheme, and that Medicare and other programs paid out more than $450 million.
Blackman’s co-defendant, Gary Cox, was convicted in June 2025 and sentenced to 15 years in prison. Cox had been the CEO of DMERx.
The Justice Department said the indictment of Blackman and his co-conspirators was filed in 2023, during the Biden administration. Under the Trump administration, DOJ has elevated fraud enforcement, with targeting fraud named as a priority and accompanied by press conferences and announcements.
In April 2026, DOJ announced the creation of a Fraud Division.. President Trump also established a task force on fraud, chaired by Vice President JD Vance, focused on eliminating fraud.. Healthcare fraud, including in the hospice and home healthcare sector, has been among the administration’s particular targets.
Outside the HealthSplash case, reporting has also put hospice fraud under intense scrutiny.. CBS News said it has investigated hospice fraud for months. including analyzing business and financial records for every hospice operating in Los Angeles County. California. using fraud “red flag” indicators identified by state auditors.. CBS News reported that more than 700 of roughly 1. 800 hospices in Los Angeles County triggered multiple red flags as defined by the state.
CBS News also reported that in 2024, the name of a Los Angeles County hospice physician, Dr.. Rajiv Bhuva, appeared on Medicare claims for nearly 2,800 patients across 126 hospices.. Bhuva told CBS News he doubted the figures and said there is no statutory limit to how many hospices a physician can staff. but after a brief exchange he declined to speak further.. DOJ said in that reporting that Bhuva is no longer allowed to bill Medicare.
As fraud enforcement and investigations continue to draw political attention, federal and state actions have continued alongside the HealthSplash prosecution.. In April. Republicans in Congress held a Capitol Hill hearing that included testimony from two individuals featured in the CBS News reporting.. Also in April, five people in California were arrested for allegedly defrauding the state’s Medicaid program of about $267 million.
Medicare fraud HealthSplash Brett Blackman healthcare kickbacks DOJ Fraud Division Florida healthcare case
this is why i dont trust doctors anymore
Wait so the doctors were fake too?? I thought it was just the braces thing. My mom got one of those back braces from some random company last year and Medicare paid for it and now im wondering if that was part of this whole thing honestly it sounds exactly the same.
A billion dollars. A BILLION. and people wanna act like Medicare is the problem and we need to cut it. no the problem is these CEO types who figured out how to basically print money off sick old people and nobody caught it for years apparently. This is exactly what happens when you let private companies anywhere near government healthcare. They will always find the loophole they always do and then regular people pay more and get less while this guy was probably buying boats or whatever. I just dont understand how this goes on that long without someone stopping it sooner.
wasnt this the same company that got caught doing the covid test fraud too or am i thinking of something else