United States of America v. Michael Shawn Boaz

Paducah, Kentucky, criminal defense lawyer represented the Defendant charged with conspiracy to commit health care fraud and 13 counts of fraudulent prescriptions.

By Kent Morlan

While working as licensed pharmacists, Michael Shawn Boaz, 47, of Clinton, and his co-conspirator fraudulently billed health care benefit programs for customers at two pharmacies in Kentucky. From 2017 through 2021, they caused $2,185,739.52 in losses to health care benefit providers by submitting claims for fraudulent and unauthorized prescriptions. Boaz added boutique vitamins to customer prescription orders. He told customers that the vitamins were “free.” However, Boaz billed the customers’ health care providers between $1,000 and $6,000 for each bottle of vitamins. Boaz also submitted claims for fraudulent and unauthorized prescriptions for the antihistamine Carbinoxamine Maleate. He purchased Carbinoxamine Maleate from a wholesaler for $605 per prescription and billed health care providers between $2,000 and $16,000 for each fraudulent prescription.

On August 7, 2025, co-conspirator Christopher Clayton Augustus, 42, of Paducah, entered a guilty plea to conspiracy to commit health care fraud, fraudulent prescriptions, and aggravated identity theft. He is awaiting sentencing.

United States Attorney Kyle Bumgarner stated, “Fraudsters like Boaz that steal from health care benefit programs negatively impact everyone’s health care costs. Health care fraud is a top priority of our office. We will continue to aggressively investigate and prosecute those that defraud our health care programs. It is my fervent hope that Boaz’s prison sentence serves a strong deterrent to other fraudsters in the Western District of Kentucky to stop their fraud now because we will find you and prosecute you.”

This case was investigated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, U.S. Department of Labor, Kentucky Attorney General’s Office of Medicaid Fraud and Abuse Control, and the Kentucky Board of Pharmacy.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Raymond McGee of the U.S. Attorney’s Paducah Branch Office prosecuted the case.

The Defendant was found guilty and was sentenced to 30 months imprisonment; 3 years S/R; Total Restitution in the amount of $1,806,212.90; total SPA of $1400 ($100 per convicted count)