Seven individuals, including several from Florida, have been charged in connection with a massive health care fraud scheme involving the exploitation of prescription drugs in a fraudulent “foot bath” treatment. This operation, which spanned from 2019 to 2020, involved billing health insurance providers for medically unnecessary treatments and paying kickbacks to facilitate the fraudulent transactions.
The charges against the defendants include conspiracy to commit health care fraud, violations of the federal Anti-Kickback Statute, and obstruction of justice for falsifying records. Among those charged are key individuals from Florida who played significant roles in executing and concealing the fraud.
The Florida-based defendants include:
Frank Suess (also known as Franz P. Suess), 78, from Wellington
Luis Salgado, 50, from Davenport and Naperville, Illinois
Victor Velazco, 35, from Loxahatchee
Warren Pizik, 68, from Davie
Dave Singh, 37, from Pembroke Pines
The indictment alleges that between 2019 and 2020, the defendants coordinated a fraudulent scheme in which individuals were prescribed “foot baths”. These foot baths were not actual foot soak treatments but rather combinations of high-cost prescription drugs like vancomycin and tobramycin. The drugs were mixed into warm water for patients to dissolve and soak their feet. Despite the lack of medical necessity and improper use of the medications, the defendants billed insurance companies for thousands of dollars in fraudulent claims.
For instance, one patient’s insurance was charged $43,000 for just one month of these fraudulent treatments. Many patients were unaware that these treatments were prescribed to them, and some didn’t even know what medications were involved.
The fraudulent operation centered around Sterling Pharmacy, located in Jermyn, Pennsylvania, which was purchased by Melissa Driscoll in 2018. Driscoll, who is also facing charges, is accused of covering up the illegal activities, including falsifying records and obstructing investigations.
Suess and Velazco, both from Florida, allegedly used their companies to direct patients to Sterling Pharmacy and other pharmacies to fill these fraudulent prescriptions. To hide their involvement, they had other individuals pose as the owners of the pharmacies.
Another key player in the fraud was Diana Castro, a podiatrist from Brooklyn, New York. Castro is accused of signing off on foot bath prescriptions without ever examining the patients. In exchange, she received cash payments for her role in the scheme, which she facilitated at health fairs where patients were recruited.
The fraudulent prescriptions were often processed through unscrupulous marketing channels, including MedX Marketing Solutions, led by Luis Salgado, the CEO. Salgado allegedly paid kickbacks to patient recruiters who collected signed order forms for the foot baths, as well as to the pharmacies that filled them.
The scheme took a significant toll on health insurance providers, with one insurance fund paying out over $685,000 in fraudulent claims for these fake foot bath treatments.
Florida played a central role in the conspiracy, with several key defendants operating from the state. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General and the FBI led the investigation, which uncovered the extensive fraud. Prosecutors are now seeking the forfeiture of assets tied to the operation, including properties in Florida and Illinois purchased with the proceeds from the fraud.
The defendants face penalties of up to 10 years in prison for each charge, along with fines and terms of supervised release. The trial is ongoing, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in court.
