Mitchell “Chad” Barrett, one of the last key players in the infamous Mississippi cream scheme, has been sentenced.
According to court documents, Barrett was a leading member in the $182.5 million health care fraud involving unnecessarily compounded pain creams and other medications.
Barrett, 55, was a licensed pharmacist in Mississippi who co-owned multiple compounding pharmacies. As part of the scheme, he adjusted prescription formulas to ensure the highest reimbursement without regard to medical necessity. He personally profited from more than $25 million.
Barrett, now of Gulf Breeze, Florida, also solicited recruiters to procure prescriptions for high-margin compounded medications. He paid those recruiters commissions based on a percentage of reimbursements paid by pharmacy benefit managers and health care benefit programs.
Barrett originally pleaded guilty to conspiracy to engage in monetary transactions in criminally derived property in August of 2021. He has been ordered to repay the fraudulently obtained money, as well as to serve 10 years in prison – the maximum sentence he could have received.
