Department of Finance & Administration
Mark Emkes, Commissioner

TWO ARRESTS BRING NUMBER ARRESTED FOR TENNCARE FRAUD TO 800

NASHVILLE - A Gibson County man faces his second arrest for TennCare fraud involving “doctor shopping” or using TennCare to pay for multiple doctors in a short period of time to obtain controlled substances.

The Office of Inspector General (OIG), a law enforcement agency separate from TennCare with the assistance of the Gibson County Sheriff’s Office and the Obion County Sheriff’s Office, today announce the arrest of Jerald G. Rodgers, of Humboldt. 

An Obion County Grand Jury indicted Rodgers on two counts of fraudulently using TennCare to obtain controlled substances by “doctor shopping” Rodgers failed to disclose to his doctor that he had seen other physicians within a 30 day period and received prescriptions for the same or similar controlled substance.

Rodgers was first arrested in September 5 when a Gibson County Grand Jury charged him with three counts of “doctor shopping” for failing to disclose to his doctor he had received prescriptions for a time-release version of Morphine known as Kadian.    

“We are aggressively working to stop the abuse and misuse of the TennCare program,” Inspector General Deborah Faulkner said. “We are pursuing prescription drug and doctor shopping cases across the state and plan to prosecute anyone and everyone we find committing TennCare fraud.”

TennCare fraud is a Class E felony carrying a sentence of up to two years per charge in prison.  District Attorney General Thomas A. Thomas will be prosecuting the Obion County case.  District Attorney General Garry Brown will be handling the Gibson County case.

The OIG, a law enforcement agency separate from TennCare, began full operation in February 2005 and has worked cases leading to the arrest of over 800 individuals for TennCare fraud, with nearly $1 million paid in restitution to TennCare, and total estimated cost avoidance in TennCare of over $122 million, according to latest figures.

Through the OIG Cash for Tips Program established by the Legislature, Tennesseans can get cash rewards for TennCare fraud tips that lead to convictions. "Anyone can report suspected TennCare fraud by calling 1-800-433-3982 toll-free from anywhere in Tennessee, or log on to www.tncarefraud.tennessee.gov and follow the prompts that read "Report TennCare Fraud."