Man sentenced in health care fraud from Mississippi, Alabama

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — A federal judge in Alabama has sentenced a Mississippi resident to more than six years in prison after the man pleaded guilty to federal charges tied to billing that pharmacies submitted to Medicare. The Justice Department says 56-year-old Phillip Minga of Amory, Mississippi, managed or controlled pharmacies in the two states. Prosecutors say Minga signed a document in 2016 to be excluded from Medicare for 10 years. They say Minga continued to manage and control pharmacies that sought Medicare payments from 2016 to this year — and he made sure those submitting paperwork would not disclose his ownership interest or managerial role.