Florida Substance Abuse Recovery Center Owner Receives Prison Sentence, Ordered to Make $5,122,886 in Restitution for Healthcare Fraud

BOYNTON BEACH, FL – After a U.S. Department of Labor Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) investigation, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida has sentenced Anthony D. Jackson, owner of Pantherview Sober House LLC, to 42 months in prison and three years of supervised release. The sentencing is in addition to court-ordered restitution of $5,122,886 following a previous guilty plea to conspiring with others to commit healthcare fraud.

EBSA found Jackson - owner of the Boynton Beach substance abuse recovery residence and a certified addiction counselor - accepted kickbacks and bribes from Kenneth Chatman, owner and chief operating officer of Reflections Treatment Center, for referring Pantherview patients to Reflections for treatment.

Jackson, who also served as the program director at Reflections, led therapy sessions and completed clinical notes related to the session. He then copied and pasted the same notes into the records of other patients who did not attend and later billed the patients' insurance for therapy sessions that did not occur.

Along with others, Jackson and Chatman provided kickbacks to the insured patients who did attend the sessions in the form of free or reduced rent, cigarettes, and other items.

"This network of co-conspirators has taken advantage of countless victims through its insurance schemes," said EBSA Regional Director Isabel Colon, in Atlanta. "Fraudulently inflating healthcare bills for unnecessary or non-existent treatment passes the costs on to others wishing to obtain health insurance. The U.S. Department of Labor remains committed to ensuring that benefits are not abused, and anyone found guilty of committing fraud is held accountable."

The investigation was a combined effort of EBSA, the FBI, the IRS, the Amtrak Office of the Inspector General, the Office of Personnel Management-Office of the Inspector General, the Florida Department of Insurance Fraud, the Martin County and Palm Beach sheriff's departments, and other local police departments. The case was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida.

Employers and workers can reach EBSA toll-free at 866-444-3272 for help with problems related to private sector retirement and health plans. Additional information can be found at https://www.dol.gov/agencies/ebsa.