Scammer pharmacist guilty in $20 million healthcare kickback scheme

DOJ’s National Fraud Enforcement Division investigates and prosecutes those who commit fraud against the American people. HOUSTON - A 54-year-old Spring resident has been convicted of conspiracy to pay health care kickbacks. The jury deliberated for more than a day before returning the guilty verdict against Tronown Thomas following a five-day trial July 11. Thomas, a licensed pharmacist, owned and operated Rayford ACP Pharmacy in Spring. At trial, the jury heard Thomas paid over $2 million in kickbacks to the owner of a Houston clinic in exchange for referrals of patients insured through the Department of Labor’s Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs (DOL-OWCP) who had been prescribed high-reimbursement compounded medications. Thomas subsequently billed the DOL-OWCP for those compounded medications, which were prescribed as part of the illegal kickbacks scheme. From November 2015 through September 2017, Thomas and Rayford ACP Pharmacy received more than $20 million in reimbursements from DOL-OWCP. The defense attempted to convince the jury that Thomas was paying for legitimate marketing services. The jury rejected these arguments and found Thomas guilty.