Joe Horn Pleads Guilty in Federal Court
Joe Horn plead guilty to conspiracy to commit health care fraud in a Kentucky federal court on Thursday. According to Yahoo Sports, Horn could receive a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 for his involvement in the fraud scheme. In 2018, Horn submitted false insurance claims in the amount of $149,775. The court records showed that he never received the medical equipment for the claims filed to the Gene Upshaw NFL Player Health Reimbursement Account Plan Trust. The NFLPA with agreement from the NFL established the insurance plan to assist former and separated NFL players and families with medical expenses when their Continuing Veterans Insurance benefits had ended.
"The defendants are alleged to have developed and executed a fraudulent scheme to undermine a health care benefit plan established by the NFL -- one established to help their former teammates and colleagues pay for legitimate medical expenses," said U.S. Attorney Robert M. Duncan, Jr., for the Eastern District of Kentucky. - from ABC NEWS
December 12, 2019, the U.S. Justice Department officially announced Horn and 9 NFL players conspired to defraud the plan for over $3.4 million in false health care filings which were received as tax-free reimbursements for medical equipment the players "never received." Horn has been cooperative and is assisting federal authorities in the case against himself and the other players involved, according to the Times-Picayune/The Advocate. Horn’s cooperation could lighten the terms of his conviction when the sentencing phase begins.
...defendants in the case submitted phony claims to the plan’s administrator, Lexington, Kentucky-based Cigna, which paid out $3.4 million between June 2017 and December 2018, according to federal authorities.
The players sent in fake invoices and falsified prescriptions for pricey medical equipment they never actually received, including a hyperbaric oxygen chamber, an ultrasound machine designed for women’s examinations and an electromagnetic therapy device for use on horses.
Joe Horn is a former NFL wide receiver and played seven seasons with the New Orleans Saints. Horn had four Pro Bowl selections as a professional player with the Saints, Chiefs, and Falcons. He completed his career by competing in 163 games, had 603 catches for 8,744 yards and 58 touchdowns. Saints fans consider Horn a Saints legend because of his passion, toughness, and ability to thrill the crowd with his antics. He was inducted into the New Orleans Saints Hall of Fame in May 2010. His son, Joe Horn, Jr., is a 2019 undrafted wide receiver, a former member of the Baltimore Ravens, and a current player with the Houston Roughnecks of the XFL.
Horn will be awaiting sentencing in April 2020 for his role in the alleged conspiracy scheme. More information regarding Joe Horn and the other NFL players will be released by the U.S. Justice Department.
