A Powell psychologist allegedly bilked about $6.8 million from Wyoming Medicaid in fraudulent bills over a four-year period, according to an indictment handed up by a federal grand jury on Friday.

The grand jury indicted Gibson Condie with 234 counts of health care fraud, the Wyoming U.S. Attorney's Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation announced in a news release Wednesday.

Condie heard the charges against him during his initial appearance before U.S. District Court Judge Scott Skavdahl in Casper on Wednesday. He was released on his own recognizance, according to minutes of the initial appearance. Condie is scheduled to appear for his arraignment before U.S. Magistrate Kelly Ranking in Cheyenne on May 30.

The indictment states Condie has a Ph.D. in educational psychology and has been licensed as a psychologist by the Wyoming Board of Psychology since March 1997. The board's website does not indicate whether Condie's license has been suspended.

He  incorporated Big Horn Basin Mental Health Group in January 2007.

Condie began the fraudulent billing June 6, 2012 through Feb. 4, 2016. The total billing amounted to $6,848,808.99.

The Wyoming Department of Health suspended all Medicaid payments to his business in 2016.

The Wyoming U.S. Attorney's Office stated, "These bills routinely reported an inappropriate and baseless mental health diagnosis and falsely identified Condie as the treating provider even thought the claimed mental health services had been provided by various other individuals, many of whom were not licensed or otherwise authorized by Medicaid to provide the claimed services."

Condie also allegedly fraudulently overbilled Medicaid for clinical assessments, billed for services that were not provided, and billed for services that Medicaid did not cover.

Besides prosecuting him for the alleged fraud, the U.S. Attorney's Office issued a forfeiture notice for property that directly or indirectly came from the commission of the crime. The property includes bank deposits including at least $398,500 deposited in the Big Horn Federal Savings Bank, a pickup, a tractor, a loader, a bale fork, other farm equipment, a Snow Cat, and real estate in Powell.

 

 

The FBI, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General, and the Wyoming Medicaid Fraud Control Unit investigated the case.

An indictment is not a finding of guilt. Individuals charged in indictments are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

If convicted, Condie faces a statutory maximum sentence of 10 years on each count of health care fraud. If convicted on more than one count, the sentences could be imposed consecutively.

In other words, he could face up to 2,340 years of imprisonment.

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