Opening arguments were scheduled today in what could turn out to be a three-month trial for four former WellCare executives accused of defrauding state Medicaid programs and Florida KidCare, theTampa Tribune reports. The company has already settled criminal and civil charges for breaking the law in the years leading up to an FBI raid on the Tampa headquarters in 2007.
With 13 lawyers and assistants, the defense outnumbered the jury, which was chosen on Monday. The four are accused of lying about how much the company spent on mental health treatment to take in hundreds of millions of dollars the company wasn’t entitled to. The executives are accused of profiting from the inflated stock.