A Houston pharmacist has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for his role in a $21 million scheme to fraudulently bill for compounded gels and creams.
George Philip Tompkins, 75, of Houston, was also ordered to pay $12.3 million in restitution, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced. Tompkins, who described himself as the "Compound King," is the former owner of Piney Point Pharmacy and was convicted by a jury in March on 11 counts of healthcare fraud and three counts of wire fraud.
Tompkins was also convicted of conspiracy to pay and receive kickbacks, conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering, the DOJ said.
According to court documents, Tompkins and his co-conspirators billed the Department of Labor for about $21.8 million in compounded gels and creams that were not medically necessary and were predicated on kickbacks. The scheme specifically targeted injured state and federal employees, according to the DOJ.
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Evidence presented at trial showed that Tompkins and his co-conspirators used several different companies to receive and launder the funds earned through the scheme. Tompkins and others involved in the scheme would disguise the kickback payments as "marketing" expenses, the DOJ said.
The co-conspirators would continue to send the compounded gels and creams to patients even after they complained repeatedly and asked them to stop, according to the DOJ.
Tompkins was sentenced alongside his wife, Marene Kathryn Tompkins, 68, of Houston, the DOJ said, who is the former vice president of Piney Point Pharmacy.
Marene Kathryn Tompkins pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to pay kickbacks before trial and was sentenced to 30 days of home confinement and three years of supervised release. She was also ordered to pay $950,745 in restitution.