Health Fraud on the Rise

It's interesting that people who commit health care fraud think they are doing nothing wrong and that those big companies have lots of money and won't miss any.

While it's an interesting attitude, to rip off a larger corporation for money that people don't think they need, it is indeed hurting people. After all, it's not just the companies that are getting ripped off; it's the people who these large corporations ultimately serve that are also getting the short end of the stick.

Insurance scams in the US alone run a tab of roughly $80 billion a year. Eighty billion is not exactly chump change to anyone. Even if this figure is whittled down to what this costs per individual served by an insurance company, the figure is still relatively high, coming in at about $880 per person.

The funny thing is, those who are ripping off the system for extra money, are also scamming themselves as well. So, while they may think they are getting away with something smart and profitable, it often works out that isn't the case. It certainly isn't the case when they inevitably get caught either.

Unfortunately, due to rapid advancements in technology, insurance frauds are getting harder and harder to catch. This may be a boon to those who perpetrate this type of crime, but be forewarned that methods to track this type of fraud are also growing by leaps and bounds.

The most common type of insurance fraud is found in the health care system and that comes with a tab of about $30 billion a year. In this area there are provider fraud and member fraud. Let's take a quick look at what member fraud may involve. This would be when you choose to deceive your insurance company by not declaring something in order to get treatment. Provider fraud is if a doctor or another health professional bills for a service they did not provide.

The bottom line here is that insurance fraud is illegal and the penalties tend to be stiff when someone is caught and convicted of this crime. However, having said that, everyone, no matter what they have been accused of, is entitled to a criminal defense. Just because they may have been charged with billing for services they didn't render does not mean they were the responsible party for doing so, nor does it mean they were aware this was happening. Beware of judging a situation before you know all the details.

Daniel Wannamaker is a board certified criminal law specialist and has 24 years of criminal trial experience with proven results as a Dallas criminal defense lawyer practicing in Austin criminal defense and Houston Texas. To learn more about Dallas criminal defense lawyer, Houston criminal defense lawyer, Austin criminal defense lawyer, visit Wannamakerlaw.com.

Texas DWI Repeat Offender

If you're on a roll and have more than one DWI offense in Texas, things aren't looking so good for you legally. Make sure you contact a criminal defense lawyer to deal with this kind of a situation.

One of the first things you need to know is that Texas has one of the highest DWI rates in the country, which is not something lawmakers are wildly crazy about. This means the laws dealing with repeat offenders tend to be fairly tough and no nonsense in nature. In cases where you have been charged with a repeat offense, immediately call a lawyer with DWI experience.

If you do happen to be convicted, and this is one of the reasons you want a top-notch DWI attorney on your side - to mitigate penalties, be prepared to be assessed for dependency on drugs or alcohol. If you made the smart move when you were arrested and charged for the second time, your DWI attorney will have a good chance to make a difference in the outcome of your case.

Make sure you do not speak to anyone else but your attorney and keep all the details to yourself. It won't help your case in the least if you choose to share these things with the police, nor would it help you later if you appear in court. In some instances, depending on the details of your case, you may find you will be required to complete a DWI education course.

If you are convicted of a second DWI, you must spend some time in jail. Once again however, if you hired a knowledgeable DWI attorney, you may find the outcome of your charges are entirely different.

Yes, you may also face license suspension, but you do have the opportunity to apply for an occupational license that lets you get to work or school. Of course, whether or not this happens also tends to depend on what kind of driving record and/or rate of convictions for DWI you may have.

If you are arrested for drunk driving for a second time, make your first call to a qualified DWI attorney and then wait for him or her to arrive. Only speak to them and let them handle the details. It's entirely possible they may be able to have your charges dismissed or reduced.

Daniel Wannamaker is a board certified criminal law specialist and has 24 years of criminal trial experience with proven results as a Dallas criminal defense lawyer practicing in Austin criminal defense and Houston Texas. To learn more about Dallas criminal defense lawyer, Houston criminal defense lawyer, Austin criminal defense lawyer, visit Wannamakerlaw.com.

White Collar Counterfeiters

White-collar crime is interesting, as it covers such a wide variety of crimes, for instance counterfeiting products.

The other term often used for counterfeit products is "pirated" and it refers to products that have been illegally made and are being sold. These knock-offs or bootlegged goods are often regarded as being a great way to save money and really, no one is hurt in the process.

While it is a great way to save money, rather than buy the original, it is definitely infringing on intellectual property rights. It's not just selling goods in violation of a copyright either, it is selling goods that specifically imply they are original quality and are authentic when they are not.

Counterfeiting has an interesting history. It was once referred to as palming off under English common law, meaning the counterfeiter palmed off a fake as being genuine. In doing this, the fraudster was horning in on the established reputation and goodwill of the original creator.

Many people still refer to counterfeiting as trademark infringement, and while that may be a valid observation, it also refers to all intellectual property rights violations – trade secrets, copyright and patents, etc. Certainly it is regarded as being a devastating crime when perpetrated on a large scale that results in significant financial losses to the creator of the original work, etc.

It's not just the loss of money that accrues to the original creator of a product that is at issue. The other serious problem that may arise from making and selling counterfeit products is their standard of quality. Consumers buying these sub-standard products may find they bought more than they bargained for if a certain item is defective and an accident is the result.

Having said that, this is a crime and is one where those charged must be accorded the right of a thorough criminal defense. Being charged with counterfeiting does not mean that the person charged was the person responsible for the scam or they were even aware of what they were doing. It's all in the details of the case, and until all the details are known and the defense heard, judgment needs to be kept in abeyance.

To learn more about Dallas criminal defense lawyer, Houston criminal defense lawyer, Austin criminal defense lawyer, visit Wannamakerlaw.com.

Fraud and a Cell Phone Card

These days creativity in perpetrating a fraud seems to be on the rise. Who would have thought that there was a way to scam people with a cell phone card?

Those prepaid cell phone cards are a real boon to people who like to pay as they go, not thinking that full regular service is really necessary or worth the expense. Cell phone users just shell out the amount they want to pay and get on with their lives and making their calls. Depending on the cost of the card, it will provide a user with a variety of choices for time limits.

As the cell phone is used, the minutes are reduced until the card is done. So far, so good. This is a useful service for many people and the way to really save money with these cards is to compare the per-minute rate and also the other charges and fees. This is where things start to get a tad murky. The other charges and fees add up and may mean you're paying for things you do not need to be paying for in the first place.

The deal is usually that the card company promotes the fact they have one of the lowest costs per call and are happy to help customers save money. This isn't always the case, and these "less than honest" providers usually have many hidden charges and fees. When your cell phone is activated, a customer starts paying a large fee to keep that account active. Usually called monthly maintenance fees, these may cost anywhere from less than a dollar to up to five dollars.

While that does not add a substantial amount to the card, some of the other practices calling card providers charge, do add up. For instance, there are a plethora of different fees charged to a user for making international phone calls. Some providers will even charge for not only using the prepaid card on a cell phone, but also charge to use it on a pay phone.

For people who buy prepaid cards for their cell phones before they go on holidays, hoping to save a few bucks here and there, they are in for a surprise. Most people are not aware that every time they use their prepaid card on a cell phone, they are incurring extra charges.

If that isn't bad enough, some prepaid calling card companies will charge a customer to start a call and to end a call. The size of that phone bill would be phenomenal when all those extra, hidden charges are added on. It's no wonder prepaid calling cards don't last as long as one thinks they should.

If faced with a suspected case of phone card fraud, approach the company first. If that does not work, then contact the International Prepaid Communications Association hotline and complain. If that fails, contact a local district attorney's office and ask for the fraud unit. Before buying any prepaid phone card, carefully research all the terms, charges and fees.

To learn more about Dallas criminal defense lawyer, Houston criminal defense lawyer, Austin criminal defense lawyer, visit Wannamakerlaw.com.