The former owner and operator of a Southern California ambulance company and two managers have been sentenced to prison for their role in a fraud scheme that resulted in more than $1.5 million in fraudulent claims to Medicare.

Yaroslav Proshak, also known as Steven Proshak, 47, was sentenced on Dec. 7 to nine years in federal prison.

On Dec.2, U.S. District Judge S. James Otero sentenced Emilia Zverev, 58, and Sharetta Michelle Wallace, 37, to two years in prison. Otero also ordered each defendant to pay $804,755 in restitution.

On Aug. 18, a federal jury in Los Angeles convicted Proshak, Zverev and Wallace of one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and five counts of health care fraud.

“Prosecuting healthcare fraud remains a high priority for the Department of Justice,” said United States Attorney Eileen M. Decker. “These sentences properly recognize and punish the fact that defendants stole money specifically set aside for those with acute medical needs.”

Zverev and Wallace worked for ProMed Medical Transportation, an ambulance transportation company owned and operated by Proshak that operated in the greater Los Angeles area. The company provided non-emergency services to Medicare beneficiaries, many of whom were dialysis patients. Zverev was the billing manager and Wallace supervised the ProMed EMTs.

The evidence at trial showed that between May 2008 and October 2010, the defendants conspired to bill Medicare for ambulance transportation services for individuals who did not need such services.  The defendants also instructed ProMed EMTs to conceal the patients’ true medical conditions by altering paperwork and creating fraudulent documents to justify the services.

During the course of the conspiracy, ProMed submitted at least $1.5 million in false and fraudulent claims to Medicare for medically unnecessary transportation services, and Medicare paid at least $804,755 on those claims.