FORT SMITH, Ark. — A Lavaca man was indicted Wednesday, Nov. 3, for a health care fraud that profited him over $100 million during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Billy Joe Taylor, 42, was charged for false billings of COVID-19 tests and other clinical lab services between February 2017 and May 2021.
According to the indictment, Taylor submitted over $100 million in false and fraudulent claims to Medicare.
Taylor is accused of obtaining Medicare beneficiaries' medical and private personal information and using that data to repeatedly submit claims to Medicare for diagnostic tests not ordered by medical providers.
The Department of Justice says that Taylor used the money he scammed to live a lavish lifestyle, including purchasing numerous luxury automobiles (including a Rolls Royce Wraith), real estate, jewelry, guitars, and other luxury clothing and items.
Taylor has been charged with 16 counts of health care fraud, and one count of engaging in a monetary transaction in a criminally derived property. He is scheduled to appear in court again on Nov. 23, 2021, for his arraignment.
Taylor faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison for each of his charges.
