Dr. Lorraine De Blanche, 56, A Dallas-area doctor, pled guilty to obstructing a federal healthcare investigation. Patient complaints and a surge in claims for durable medical equipment (DME) and compounded prescription drugs triggered investigations into telemedicine fraud targeting federal insurers, including TRICARE, CHAMPVA, and Medicare. This prompted federal investigators to speak with medical providers linked to related DME claims and prescriptions. In March 2019, Special Agents from DCIS and VA-OIG interviewed Dr. De Blanche about her work for telemedicine companies in 2015 and 2016, while she was practicing in Little Rock. During the interview she acknowledged working for the companies at issue but willfully misled agents about her telemedicine consultations. Dr. De Blanche reported she always evaluated patients by telephone before determining whether or not compounded prescription drugs or DME were needed. As Dr. De Blanche would later admit, however, on repeated occasions she ordered the products without first consulting patients.
