Medical Equipment Firms Charged With Fraud

Five medical equipment companies were charged by the government Thursday with defrauding dozens of health insurers of millions of dollars using bait-and-switch sales tactics.

The Federal Trade Commission said the nationwide telemarketers operated by selling one product to consumers and then getting a doctor’s permission to file insurance claims, which they did for other, more expensive equipment.

Sometimes, the FTC said, the defendants billed for items and accessories that were never discussed with or ordered by consumers.

The agency said the charges were its first against companies for using consumers in schemes to defraud health insurers. Separate complaints were filed in federal court, which will decide the cases against:

* Independence Medical Inc. of Mt. Pleasant, S.C.; Independent Medical of America Inc., which has offices in Jacksonville, Fla., and operates out of the same Mt. Pleasant office as Independence Medical, and corporate officers Jerry Rodney Rogers and Jeffrey S. Marmer.

* Freedom Medical Inc. of Hilliard, Ohio; company President Robert A. Patten and Vice President Robert L. Grden, and Freedom Medical of Wisconsin of New Berlin, Wis.

* Motion Medical Inc. of Blacklick, Ohio, which has an office in Charlotte, N.C., and company President Anton Albert Wood.

Federal courts in Ohio and South Carolina have frozen the defendants’ assets and appointed receivers to oversee operations, the FTC said.

None of the defendants could be reached for comment.