Sleep center owner in Fresno pleads guilty in Medicare fraud case, federal prosecutors say
A Hanford man pleaded guilty in a Fresno courtroom Monday to a $1 million fraud scheme to steal money from Medicare, according to prosecutors.
Travis Gober, 44, also pleaded guilty to an identity theft charge in connection to the fraudulent claims to Medicare for sleep studies run through his business, the VIP Sleep Center in Fresno and Tulare counties, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said in a news release.
Sleep clinics perform diagnostic sleep studies on patients to identify disorders like sleep apnea and narcolepsy.
Gober submitted thousands of Medicare claims between October 2019 and September 2021 despite not actually conducting the studies on patients, prosecutors said. He also faked referrals from doctors.
Gober committed the fraud in part to cover debts his brother had incurred without his knowledge, the news release said.
The brother, Jeremy Gober, has been charged in a separate 11-count indictment for $8 million in Medicare fraud. His case is ongoing.
Travis Gober is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 16. He faces a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison for the health care fraud conviction, and a mandatory two years in prison for the identity theft conviction, prosecutors said.
This story was originally published September 18, 2023 at 12:41 PM.
