Mississippi Revokes 59 Agents’ Licenses for Residency Misrepresentation

The Mississippi Insurance Department has revoked the licenses of 59 insurance producers after they reportedly gave false information about their residences and then failed to show for a hearing.

“The evidence is clear, these agents don’t live in Mississippi. They applied for a license here under false pretenses,” state Insurance Commissioner Mike Chaney said in a statement. “To put it simply, they lied, and lying on the application, misrepresenting the facts, leads to losing your license. It could also bring additional civil and criminal penalties.”

The producers, engaged in selling federal health insurance coverage, were granted resident licenses in recent years. But an investigation, stemming from information provided by the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and from a health insurance provider, found that none of them lived in Mississippi and some of them have criminal records that were not disclosed, the department said. Most of the accused reside in Florida.

All 59 agents in were summoned to a July 20 hearing. But none of them attended.

“The Commissioner finds that by signing and submitting a Mississippi residential producer license application, the Respondent expressly certified and attested, under penalty of perjury, that all information, statements, and supporting documentation provided was true, accurate, complete and not misleading,” reads the commissioner’s order, outlining the charges against one agent. “Furthermore, the Respondent further acknowledged that any misrepresentation of material fact constitutes a violation subjecting him to potential regulatory enforcement action including denial or revocation of licensure, and any additional civil and criminal penalties authorized by law.”

The Mississippi Insurance Department gave no details on the work that the non-resident producers may have been involved in. But the episode appears to be the latest example of organizations around the country attempting to cash in on commissions paid for signing people up for Affordable Care Act health insurance, also known as ObamaCare.

In Florida this year, a vice president at a Stuart insurance agency was sentenced to almost three years in prison for his role in a scheme that fraudulently enrolled thousands of people—many of them homeless—in Affordable Care Act health insurance plans. Two others were sentenced to 20 years in prison for what prosecutors said was a $180 million scheme.

The names of the 59 producers who lost their Mississippi resident licenses can be seen on the department’s administrative order, here.

Other states’ insurance regulators are investigating, and criminal prosecutions may soon follow, Chaney said.