Former NFL running back Clinton Portis was sentenced Thursday to six months in prison for his role in defrauding a health care program for retired players and their families that netted nearly $2.5 million in fraudulent claims, federal authorities said.
Portis' sentence also included a six-month term of home detention as part of his supervised release, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office in the Eastern District of Kentucky.
Portis, 40, of Fort Mill, South Carolina, a leading rusher for the Denver Broncos and the Washington Football Team in the 2000s, was facing up to 10 years in prison for his role in the scheme. He pleaded guilty in September to conspiracy to commit health care fraud and agreed to pay full restitution, the Justice Department said in a statement.
Officials said Portis “caused the submission of false and fraudulent claims to the Plan on his behalf over a two-month period, obtaining $99,264 in benefits for expensive medical equipment that was not actually provided.”
Portis’ co-defendant, officials said, is former NFL wide receiver Tamarick Vanover, 47, of Tallahassee, Florida. Vanover also pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit health care fraud and agreed to pay full restitution.
Vanover recruited three other former NFL players and helped them bring fraudulent claims, obtaining $159,510 for medical equipment that was never provided, officials said.
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