FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Case # 18CF0201
Date: January 23, 2018
PODIATRIST CHARGED WITH INSURANCE FRAUD FOR BILLING SEVERAL PATIENTS FOR MEDICAL SERVICES NEVER PERFORMED
*Defendant is currently awaiting extradition from Oregon
SANTA ANA, Calif. – A podiatrist was charged with insurance fraud for billing several patients for medical services she never performed.
|
Defendant |
Charges |
Maximum Sentence |
Court Date |
|
Renae Louise Witt, 47, La Pine, Oregon |
Charged on Jan. 16, 2018, with the following felony counts:
Sentencing Enhancements
|
16 years in state prison |
Arraignment
Jan. 24, 2018, 1:30 p.m.
Department C-55, Central Justice Center
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Circumstances of the Case
- At the time of the crimes, Witt was a podiatrist practicing in Tustin.
- Between May 12, 2015, and March 31, 2017, the defendant is accused of submitting fraudulent billing for services not rendered on six patients after their treatment was complete.
- Witt is accused of billing Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Cross / Blue Shield a total of $174,395 for various medical services she never performed and depositing large sums of money into her business bank account.
- On Nov. 6, 2017, the defendant moved from Orange County to Oregon.
- Anthem Blue Cross contacted the Orange County District Attorney’s Office, who investigated this case, to report potentially fraudulent billing by the defendant.
- On Jan. 19, 2018, deputies from the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Department arrested Witt in La Pine, where she is currently awaiting extradition.
Prosecutor: Deputy District Attorney Hope Callahan, Insurance Fraud Unit