Burlington County medical-device distributor accused of insurance fraud

A Cinnaminson distributor of breathing-aid devices risks five to 10 years in prison, if convicted of pocketing about $103,000 in insurance payments intended for the manufacturer and marketer.

Loetta Karen Edwards, 46, is charged with one second-degree count of theft by failure to make required disposition of property received, according to information from the office of acting New Jersey Attorney General Robert Lougy.

Prosecutors said that Edwards owns Edwards Medical DME, LLC, and distributed the Canadian-manufactured Frequencer for sufferers of cystic fibrosis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

Her role would be to order them for patients who paid through insurors, process the claims, receive the payments, and remit portions to Dymedso, Inc., and Ohio-based Clinical Technology, investigators said.

She is suspected of diverting payments between December 2013 and November 2014.

Prosecutors underscore that the indictment is only an accusation.

Confidential, anonymous tips about suspected insurance fraud can be placed through the New Jersey Insurance Fraud Prosecutor's web page, or at 1-877-55-FRAUD.