People, Not Companies Must Be Held Accountable For Stealing From Medicare

Doug Harrison - Responsible for The Scooter Store

Doug and Susanna Harrison are the the 'faces' behind The Scooter Store.  They founded The Scooter Store and were personally responsible for its operations, policies and procedures - until they jumped ship in 2012.

Now it turns out that Doug and Susanna Harrison, Founders of The Scooter Store which ran late-night commercials implying that many people could get “free” motorized wheelchairs paid for by taxpayers and profiting the company overbilled Medicare and Medicaid by up to $88 million from 2009 to 2011.

They spent years greasing the palms of politicians.  Through The Scooter Store, they gave $86,273 to federal politicians and were a top source of funds for 19 members of Congress. Since 2007, they have given $473,000 to politicians.

They also spent nearly $4 million on lobbying since 2004 trying to kill laws to curb waste, fraud, and abuse in the Medicare and Medicaid programs.  Some of their unneeded scooters cost $4,415 (EV Rider Royale 4-wheel scooter).  After being charged with fraud, the company said it would only repay $20 million of the $88 million defrauded from Medicare.  They actually had the audacity to file a lawsuit against the government (really all of us as consumers) for not approving their claims.

Defrauding Medicare by $100 million+

Doug and Susanna must be held accountable.  They continue to live the life of luxury. People must be held accountable for fraud, not a company which has no soul or conscious… and now, no assets. 

Sen. Tom Coburn, Oklahoma Republican, said “durable equipment” routinely goes to people who do not need it and the government doesn’t have the tools it needs to fully recover losses when pushers are overpaid by the government.

Doug Harrison is quoted as saying he’s proud what he and the Scooter Store did.  During March 2012, he jumped ship just before the company began to implode and the majority of its employees suddenly lost their livelihood and creditors lost their money.  He also left the city of New Brunfels high and dry after they gave into pressure from him to relocate the company.  They provided massive tax incentives to stay, which they are now unlikely to ever recoup. 

People, Not Companies Must Be Held Accountable For Stealing From Medicare.
'We the people' are out a great deal of money.  In my opinion, the Harrison's must be brought to trial and made an example of if we are to curb fraud of our health care system.  Since no bankers were ever tried, this is sadly, unlikely.  Please share your thoughts about this below.

One more thought... Don’t Believe What You Read

I’ve always been skeptical about awards.  Many ‘awarding’ organizations simply don’t do their due diligence properly.  The awards ‘awarded’ below cement that feeling.

The Scooter Store was accredited by the Accreditation Commission for Health Care, Inc. and was certified by Senior Approved Services.  On their website, Senior Approved Services states:  Consumers - when you select a Certified Senior Approved Service, you can be assured that it is a safe, reliable company with a proven history of quality care. 

Runzheimer International awarded the company their “Best Practices” award – three times! 

Fortune magazine named The SCOOTER Store as one of the "100 Best Companies to Work For".

Five consecutive years of making the INC. 500 list earned The Scooter Store membership in the Inc. 500 Hall of Fame. 

By Tom Wilson, Co-Founder and President of The CareGiver Partnership.