Former NFL Players Plead Guilty to Health Care Fraud Scheme

Three former football players have pled guilty for their roles in a health care fraud scheme. The admission of guilt brings the total number of former professional athletes who defrauded a health care fund intended to help NFL players to 15.

Former Washington Football team player Clinton Portis, 40, and Kansas City Chiefs player Tamarick Vanover, 47, entered their guilty pleas last Friday. A third player, Robert McCune, 40, whose professional career spanned multiple NFL teams, entered his guilty plea in late August.

The Gene Upshaw NFL Player Health Reimbursement Account Plan was a fund created in 2006 to help give NFL players tax-free reimbursements for health expenses for players, their spouses, and their dependents. These reimbursements were for payments not covered by their insurance. The plan reimbursed players up to $350,000 per player.

According to the Department of Justice, the players involved in this scheme submitted false claims to the plan and in turn, were given hefty payments for expensive medical equipment that prosecutors say was never actually obtained.

Over the course of two months, the DOJ explains Portis received $99,264 in payments from claims he submitted. Vanover was involved in the scheme by recruiting three other former NFL players to fraudulently obtain funds. Vanover helped his recruits fill out false claims and submit them for a total of $159,510 for expensive medical equipment that was also never obtained.

McCune has been regarded as the ringleader of the scheme. Prosecutors explain he was the mastermind behind recruiting players who would then file false claims with McCune’s help in exchange for a kickback. In total, McCune is alleged to have submitted close to $3 million worth of false claims. These claims paid out roughly $2.5 million between June 2017 and December 2018.

The guilty plea entered into by Portis and Vanover comes after the pair had a trial that ended in a hung jury. Certain counts against Vanover were the result of a mistrial as well. McCune, who was also a third defendant in the trial, had pled guilty to his charges on the second day of the trial. A new trial for Portis and Vanover began earlier this week.

Both Portis and Vanover agreed to pay full restitution to the plan after they entered their admission of guilt for attempting to commit health care fraud. Portis will be sentenced on January 6 of next year while Vanover will be sentenced on January 22 of next year. The pair face a maximum penalty of 10 years behind bars.

McCune, the ring leader of the operation, has also pled guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Additionally, he has pled guilty to 13 counts of health care fraud, 11 counts of wire fraud, and three counts of identity theft. For McCune’s involvement, he could face life behind bars.

According to the DoJ, the FBI assisted in the nationwide case.