Helen Boerman, a 48-year-old optometric physician from Brentwood, pleaded guilty this week in federal court to what prosecutors describe as a years-long scheme that drained about $6.9 million from Medicare. Authorities say Boerman used her Brentwood Eye Care practice to bill for wound-care products that were never purchased or used as claimed, and that she directed staff to alter patient records so the paperwork lined up with the bogus claims. She is scheduled to be sentenced on September 10, 2026.
According to a press release from the U.S. Department of Justice, Boerman admitted that from March 2020 through October 2024 she submitted about $11 million in false Medicare claims and received approximately $6.9 million in payments. Prosecutors say the scheme involved billing Medicare, TennCare and Federal Employees Health Benefits programs for new, single-use wound products that were split and billed multiple times. “Eliminating fraud in federal programs and holding fraudsters accountable is among the highest priorities of the Department of Justice,” U.S. Attorney Braden H. Boucek said in the release.
How Prosecutors Say The Billing Scheme Worked
Prosecutors highlighted a May 2022 example in which Brentwood Eye Care submitted claims for wound-care placements on days when appointment records showed no service was actually provided, then staff were told to go back and add entries to justify the charges. Court documents say those backfilled records were used to substantiate repeated claims for single-use products and to maximize reimbursements along the way.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office says the case was investigated by the HHS Office of Inspector General, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and the Office of Personnel Management Office of Inspector General, and that it is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Bogni, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
Boerman's Practice And Local Standing
Boerman has long operated Brentwood Eye Care, which describes itself online as a longtime local optometry practice and lists specialty services such as surgical co-management and specialty contact lenses. Those kinds of services typically require careful documentation when billed to federal programs, a level of support that prosecutors say was missing or falsified in this case. The practice's public profile is available on Brentwood Eye Care's website.
What Happens Next
Boerman pleaded guilty and will be sentenced by Chief U.S. District Judge William L. Campbell Jr. on September 10, 2026, with a statutory maximum of five years in federal prison. The Justice Department says the prosecution was coordinated with its National Fraud Enforcement Division as part of broader efforts to protect taxpayer funds. At sentencing, investigators and prosecutors will present information to the court, which will decide Boerman’s punishment and any restitution owed.
