Post by Scumhunter on Jul 6, 2015 2:16:44 GMT -5
(Above photo credit: amw.com archives)
Susan Bendigo was a web-exclusive case on AMW's old website, as her profile had the memorable headline "Nurses Gone Wild." Below is the archive description explaining why her profile got that title:
Shady Nurses Put Lives In Danger With Medi-Cal Scheme
Investigators say it began in May 2004; by the time it unraveled, it was the largest Medi-Cal fraud case in California history.
The scheme, allegedly hatched by two registered nurses, Priscilla Villabroza and Susan Bendigo, centered around the hiring of unlicensed workers to perform services to disabled Medi-Cal patients.
Authorities say they then billed Medi-Cal as if skilled, licensed nurses had done the work. In total, Villabroza's Santa Fe Springs-based company, Medcare Plus Home Health Providers, and its sister companies, Excel Plus and Unicare, bilked Medi-Cal and California taxpayers out of $4.6 million.
But the fraudulent activity didn't stop there.
Disabled Patients Feel The Brunt Of Fraud
Prosecutors claim that all sorts of improprieties happened at Medcare, Excel Plus and Unicare ranging from falsifying documents to impersonating a Licensed Vocational Nurse (LVN).
Court documents state that Bendigo advised some of the unlicensed workers to lie about their licensing, identity, and qualifications and, if asked, to say that they were LVNs.
On July 9, 2009, federal and state authorities arrested 20 of the 42 defendants named in the indictment. Most of the people arrested either had little or no nursing training.
According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, these unlicensed nurses visited patients at home and at school and provided nursing services.
However, soon some parents and patients began to see that these "nurses" weren't the real deal. In one case, a "nurse" was unable to replace a tracheotomy tube that had fallen out of a young patient's neck.
In another case, a worker simply fled a medical situation when she couldn't provide care.
The victims? Disabled patients, many of them children with cerebral palsy or developmental disabilities.
All of the defendants in the indictment are charged with conspiracy to commit health fraud, a felony count that carries a maximum penalty of ten years in federal prison.
Villabroza pleaded guilty in 2008 to five federal counts of health care fraud and is awaiting sentencing.
She could be sent to prison for up to 50 years.
Bendigo was also charged in 2008, but fled the country. Authorities believe she could be in the Philippines.
Thoughts? Unfortunately the archive "Profile" listing Bendigo's height, weight, etc. couldn't be retrieved. Based on past news articles, Bendigo is somewhere in her mid-late 40's today. And it is widely believed she is living in the Phillippines. As far as I know, she is still at large.
Admin Note #1: Based on alleged crime description, if you have any advice on Bendigo's whereabouts, our advice would be to call the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General hotline at 800-HHS-TIPS (800-477 8477) or the California Department of Justice’s Bureau of Medi-Cal Fraud and Elder Abuse hotline at 800-722-0432
Admin Note #2: If you have any news-related updates on this case, please contact us here: amwfans.com/thread/1662/website-contact-form
web.archive.org/web/20090810020759/http://www.amw.com/fugitives/case.cfm?id=67074
news.pecojon.org/filipino-nurse-wanted-in-the-united-states/
www.fbi.gov/losangeles/press-releases/2009/la070909.htm