Doctor, Cosmetologist Sentenced To Federal Prison For Fraud

Jan. 28--A Gainesville doctor and his former wife were sentenced Monday to multiple years in federal prison and ordered to pay restitution for filing more than $4.4 million in fraudulent claims to Medicare and Blue Cross Blue Shield.

Mika Kamissa Harris was sentenced to 90 months in prison for each count of which she was convicted. The terms will be served concurrently.

Dr. Erik Michael Schabert was sentenced to 42 months in prison for each of the counts of which he was convicted, to be served concurrently.

Both will serve three years supervised release when their prison terms end and were ordered to pay fines and more than $4.4 million in restitution.

Harris and Schabert were convicted by a Gainesville jury in October.

Schabert, a licensed osteopathic physician, and Harris, a licensed cosmetologist, operated Reliant Family Practice in Gainesville since 2011, and conspired to commit health care fraud by filing dozens of faulty claims with Medicare and Blue Cross Blue Shield between January 2013 and July 2016.

Former patients testified at the more than three-week-long trial that the pair submitted faulty claims under their names, which included surgeries and treatments that never took place to treat falsified skin-condition diagnoses.

Harris was found guilty on 48 total counts of submitting fraudulent health care claims between 2013 and 2015.

Schabert was found guilty on 24 total counts of submitting fraudulent health care claims during the same time period.

Harris was also found guilty on 40 counts of money laundering, which totaled more than $3.1 million she funneled into two personal bank accounts in 2014 and 2015.

In addition to the prison terms and restitution, Harris and Schabert must forfeit a residential property at 7115 NW 14th Ave.; a property at 4408 NW 36th Ave., the address of About Skin, a laser hair removal and skin "medspa;" and an annuity account in Harris' name.

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