Utah plastic surgeon among four charged in COVID-1 vaccine card scam

Rachel Schilke

January 23, 01:15 PM January 23, 01:15 PM

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A Utah plastic surgeon is among four Beehive State residents who have been charged with selling people fraudulent COVID-19 immunization cards without actually administering the vaccine.

Michael Kirk Moore, 58, a doctor at the Midvale practice of Plastic Surgery Institute of Utah, was charged alongside his neighbor, Kristin Jackson Andersen, 59, surgical coordinator Kari Dee Burgoyne, 52, and receptionist Sandra Flores, 31, according to a release from the Justice Department.

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Moore and the three other co-defendants are being charged on account of allegedly running a scheme to “defraud the United States and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.”

Together, the defendants allegedly destroyed $28,028.50 worth of coronavirus vaccines and distributed at least 1,937 doses’ worth of fraudulent vaccine record cards for either direct cash or “donations” to a specified charity, the department claimed. No vaccines were administered to the patients receiving the cards.

The defendants also provided saline shots instead of the vaccine to minors at the request of parents, the department said, so the children would think they are getting vaccinated.

“By allegedly falsifying vaccine cards and administering saline shots to children instead of COVID-19 vaccines, not only did this provider endanger the health and well-being of a vulnerable population but also undermined public trust and the integrity of federal healthcare programs,” said Special Agent Curt L. Muller with the Department of Health and Human Services.

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The charges for the four defendants include conspiracy to defraud the United States; conspiracy to convert, sell, convey, and dispose of government property; and conversion, sale, conveyance, and disposal of government property and aiding and abetting.

An initial court appearance is set for Thursday, Jan. 26. No minimum or maximum sentencing has been posted.