Man To Admit To Shipping Unsolicited 'Erectile Pumps' In Medicare Scam
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (CBS) -- A Northbrook man has agreed to plead guilty to shipping "erectile pumps" to diabetes patients who never asked for them, as part of a Medicare scam.
The devices were actually $26 penis enlargement pumps the man bought from an adult Web site.
Gary Winner, 49, will plead guilty to charges in Rhode Island, and will forfeit $2 million, prosecutors said.
Winner allegedly repackaged the penis pumps and shipped them to diabetes patients, with information claiming the devices helped "bladder control, urinary flow and prostate comfort."
Prosecutors say Winner billed Medicare an average of $284 for each item, claiming they were used to treat erectile dysfunction.
Officials say Winner targeted Medicare beneficiaries through his company, Buffalo Grove-based Planned Eldercare. They say the company induced people to provide their Medicare information by promising free products.
Winner's attorney did not immediately return a message from the Associated Press.
The Mayo Clinic says vacuum actually have some use for treatment of erectile dysfunction, cannot permanently enlarge the penis as advertisements claim. There is no mention of use of such devices for bladder control, urinary flow or prostate comfort.
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