Pharmacist Busted For Allegedly Stealing $15 Million from Medicaid For Plastic Surgery

On Thursday, the pharmacist, identified as Hin Wong, faced grand-larceny and other charges in Manhattan Criminal Court, where she pleaded not guilty. She is now being held on $500,000 bail.

State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman’s office revealed that Wong was operating three pharmacies which reportedly paid kickbacks to patients to fill their HIV/AIDS prescriptions. Between July 2014 and August 2017, Wong reportedly auto-filled the prescriptions and billed Medicaid for them, although she never actually provided the pills to the patients. During the period, the pharmacies were found to have billed Medicaid and other insurers $15 million but failed to buy enough medication to support it. Based on a financial audit, only some $9 million was actually paid for drugs. Medicaid’s reimbursement rate for the medications is currently $2,000 a month, the New York Post noted. 

The civil suit claims that there was a “substantial inventory shortfall, amounting to more than $6 million”.

Wong was also found to have “made numerous lavish personal purchases of goods and services.”

According to the authorities, 49-year-old Manhattan resident Hin Wong blew all the money on travel, designer furniture, plastic surgery, and shopping sprees at luxury stores.

Based on her credit card records, Wong spent at least $80,000 on designer goods from Prada, Miu Miu, and Louis Vuitton, New York Daily News reported. Court documents also revealed that she spent another $1,000 on a plastic surgeon in June.

Feature Image (left) via Google Maps, (right) via NY1