An Anaheim woman pleaded guilty on Thursday, Aug. 27 to healthcare fraud for submitting more than $2.2 million in Medicare claims for hospice care provided to patients who were not terminally ill.
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Lynn Galbraith, 60, pleaded guilty to one count of healthcare fraud and faces up to 10 years in federal prison, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Galbraith co-owned and operated Garden Grove-based Azure Hospice Care from September 2019 until July 2022, when she became the company’s sole owner, prosecutors said. She remained the sole owner until February 2024.
According to her plea agreement, Galbraith knowingly submitted or caused the submission of Medicare claims for hospice services involving beneficiaries who did not have a terminal illness with a life expectancy of six months or less.
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Prosecutors said Galbraith either knew the patients did not qualify for hospice care or knew their medical records did not contain sufficient documentation supporting a diagnosis and prognosis that qualified them for Medicare hospice benefits.
Galbraith admitted submitting approximately $2.27 million in fraudulent claims to Medicare on behalf of Azure Hospice Care, with Medicare paying the company approximately $2.14 million.
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