Aaron Rossi

A Morton man who previously pleaded guilty to federal tax and fraud charges has been indicted on separate healthcare, mail- and wire-fraud charges.   

Aaron Rossi, 40, who is scheduled to be sentenced on July 2 at the U.S. Courthouse in Peoria, was named in a new 11-count indictment that includes six counts of healthcare fraud, one count of mail fraud, and four counts of wire fraud. Prosecutors allege that he defrauded the state of Illinois and public and private health insurance companies out of hundreds of thousands of dollars during the COVID-19 pandemic 

The latest indictment alleges new offenses and conduct that are separate from Rossi’s first case, alleged criminal behavior that took place after his previously adjudicated criminal behavior. Rossi has been in federal custody pending sentencing on that first case since September, due to his committing multiple violations of his bond conditions.  

Prosecutors say Rossi had a medical degree from a medical school in Barbados, but was not licensed to practice medicine in the United States. After being fired from his previous job in Bloomington in 2018, he became the manager of a company in Pekin, Reditus Laboratories, a full-service pathology laboratory, which offered various testing services, including PCR tests for the COVID-19 virus.  

In early 2020, Rossi and Reditus began processing COVID-19 PCR tests “which were paid for with both public and private health insurance programs, such as Medicare, Medicaid, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois, Healthlink, and the Health Resources & Services Administration’s Uninsured Program.” 

Prosecutors say the six counts of alleged healthcare fraud involved Rossi causing Reditus to mischaracterize billing for COVID-19 tests in order to receive payment for services that were not actually rendered. 

The single mail fraud count and four wire fraud counts are related to a flat rate contract, which Rossi signed with the State of Illinois in his capacity as Reditus’ manager. That contract allowed Reditus to invoice the State only for the difference between what a patient’s healthcare coverage paid and the agreed-upon flat rate. However, Rossi allegedly developed a scheme to bill both individual healthcare providers and the state, so that Reditus fraudulently received payments for the same COVID-19 PCR tests from both the state and the insurer.  

Rossi previously pleaded guilty in February to two felonies related to a scheme to defraud his former employer, Central Illinois Orthopedic Surgery in Bloomington, which provided surgical orthopedic services and therapy services. Rossi pleaded guilty to one count of mail fraud and one count of filing a false federal tax return in relation to the scheme. 

As part of his plea, Rossi admitted to illegally taking funds from Central Illinois Orthopedic Surgery and purchasing assorted personal goods, including clothing and an ultra-high-definition big screen television. Rossi hid his clothing purchases by calling them “medical supplies” or “uniforms” in his employer’s books and records. Other undisclosed expenditures included a leased luxury vehicle for himself and a rented private plane for his bachelor party.  

Rossi also admitted to purposefully hiding income from his tax preparer to avoid paying taxes. In 2017 alone, prosecutors alleged, he had more than $500,000 in income that he did not declare on his taxes.  

At sentencing July 2, Rossi faces up to 20 years in prison on the mail fraud count, and up to three years on the false tax return count. 

Rossi’s liability for the 11 new criminal charges, if convicted, includes up to 10 years in prison for each healthcare fraud charge, and up to 20 years for each of the mail fraud and wire fraud charges. In addition, each of the 11 charges carries a fine of up to $250,000.