You’ll never guess which political party – Hey, how’d you know?
By 
I was checking the HHS Office of Inspector General’s site for COVID-related fraud cases the other day (chacun à son goût, say I) and I came across this headline.
Jury Convicts State Lawmaker of COVID-19 Fraud Scheme at Springfield Health Care Charity
Hmmm, I wonder …?
Patricia “Tricia” Ashton Derges, 64, of Nixa, Mo., was found guilty of 10 counts of wire fraud, 10 counts of distributing drugs over the internet without a valid prescription, and two counts of making false statements to a federal law enforcement agent.
Derges was convicted of three counts of wire fraud related to her attempt to fraudulently receive nearly $900,000 in CARES Act funds. Derges actually was awarded $296,574 in CARES Act funds for Lift Up, although Lift Up did not provide any COVID-19 testing services to its patients. In fact, Lift Up’s medical clinic closed at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic and remained closed from March to June 2020.
But wait, there’s more!
Derges also was convicted of seven counts of wire fraud related to a nearly $200,000 fraud scheme, which lasted from December 2018 to May 2020. Derges marketed a stem cell treatment that actually utilized amniotic fluid that did not contain any stem cells. The federal indictment charged her with defrauding four specific victims, each of whom testified during the trial.
And more.
Derges also was convicted of 10 counts of distributing Oxycodone and Adderall over the internet without valid prescriptions. The indictment alleges that Derges, without conducting in-person medical evaluations of the patients, wrote electronic prescriptions for Oxycodone and Adderall for patients and transmitted them to pharmacies over the internet.
Sheesh, give it a rest alrea-
Derges also was convicted of two counts of making false statements to federal agents investigating this case in May 2020.
Derges told agents that the amniotic fluid allograft that she used in her practice contained mesenchymal stem cells, which she knew was false. Derges also told federal agents that she had not treated a patient for urinary incontinence with amniotic fluid allograft, which she knew was false.
That’s two scams, being a reckless ass with the DEA prescription pad, lying to federal agents who were investigating Scam 1 and starting Scam 2 while being investigated and – the chef’s kiss heard round the world: Running for office while criming.
Are they? Could they be? Of course they are.
And yes, there was an introduction of self-serving legislation! Derges is (or was) an assistant physician (not to be confused with a physician assistant). This bill would have allowed her get credit for the time she spent lying to and endangering patients that would go toward allowing her to practice as a physician. Bold!
Obligatory detail by lazy writers.
Derges was elected in November 2020 as a Missouri state representative in District 140 (Christian County).
People who post off topic comments are narcs.
