Dr. Daniel Jiannetto (left) and Michelle McKleroy were arrested for allegedly defrauding the Medicaid program of more than $100,000.
Dr. Daniel Jiannetto (left) and Michelle McKleroy are charged with defrauding the Medicaid program of more than $100,000.

A Wesley Chapel doctor and his former spouse have been charged with allegedly filing thousands of dollars in false Medicaid claims for medical services that never were given.

According to a press release from Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi’s Office, Dr. Daniel Jiannetto, 54, and his ex-wife/office manager Michelle McKleroy, 45, were taken into custody on July 15, following an investigation by state Medical Fraud Control Unit for allegedly defrauded the Florida Medicaid program of more than $100,000.

The press release states that a complaint from the Division of Insurance Fraud and Amerigroup Health Plan sparked the investigation. Dr. Jiannetto, who ran the Jiannetto Institute (an ear, nose & throat practice with an address listed in the Summergate Professional Center in Seven Oaks) and McKleroy, (whose arrest report states that she currently works as a nurse at Moffitt Cancer Center on the University of South Florida [USF]’s Tampa campus) allegedly billed and were reimbursed for medical services that never were rendered.

Dr. Jiannetto and McKleroy face one count each of first-degree Medicaid provider fraud, one count of first-degree scheming to defraud and one count of second-degree criminal use of personal identification information.

The Pasco County Sheriff’s Office (PCSO) took Dr. Jiannetto into custody, who is being held without bond at the Land O’Lakes Detention Center. McKleroy was arrested by the USF Police Department. and released on July 16 on a $70,000 bond.

If convicted, the defendants face up to 30 years in prison and more than $100,000 in fines and restitution. Attorney General Bondi’s Office of Statewide Prosecution will prosecute the case.

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