Four individuals have been indicted on charges related to healthcare fraud at sober homes in Lexington, Kentucky. The accused are Delores Jordan from Charlotte, North Carolina; Dashawn Dawkins and Ernest Williams from Lexington, Kentucky; and Jerome Davis from Indianapolis, Indiana. They face allegations of conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud and receive kickbacks.
The indictment claims that Serenity Keepers LLC, a sober home company based in Fayette County, Kentucky, was involved in fraudulent activities. It is alleged that the company used urine drug tests for non-medical purposes and solicited kickbacks for referring these tests to laboratories. These kickbacks were reportedly paid to Jordan's son, Dawkins, initially amounting to $1,300 every two weeks. In October 2021, the demand allegedly increased to $5,000 due to a higher volume of tests.
Furthermore, the indictment suggests that these urine drug tests were not medically necessary nor ordered by treating medical providers but were still billed to Medicare and Medicaid. This resulted in approximately $26.7 million being fraudulently charged between August 2019 and March 2022.
Additionally, it is alleged that Serenity Keepers falsely billed Kentucky Medicaid for peer support services not provided according to state regulations or by qualified personnel.
The indictment was announced by Carlton S. Shier IV, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky; Michael Stansbury of the FBI Louisville Field Office; and Russell Coleman, Kentucky Attorney General. The investigation was conducted by the FBI alongside the Kentucky Attorney General's Office of Medicaid Fraud and Abuse.
Initial court appearances have been held for Dawkins, Davis, and Williams while Jordan's appearance is scheduled for December 4th. If convicted, they face up to ten years in prison (five years for Davis) along with fines up to $250,000 plus restitution as determined by the court.
It should be noted that an indictment is merely an accusation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.