Muncie doctor sentenced to 5 years after pleading guilty to Medicaid fraud, obstruction of justice

DELAWARE COUNTY, Ind. — A Muncie doctor who was previously convicted after writing illegal drug prescriptions was sentenced last week after pleading guilty to Medicaid fraud and other felony charges in three separate cases.

The Delaware County Prosecutor’s Office announced Monday that William Hedrick was sentenced on Friday, July 19 in Delaware County Circuit 3 to five years in prison after pleading guilty to the following charges:

• Unlawful Dispensation of Controlled Substance
• Medicaid Fraud
• Obstruction of Justice
• Harassment by telegraph, mail or written communication

According to previous reports , Hedrick was found guilty of three felony counts of forgery and three felony counts of prescription-related registration offenses in June of 2018 during his time working at the Centers for Pain Relief in Muncie.

At that time, Delaware County officials claimed that Hedrick had contributed to the deaths of eight people by overprescribing certain medications.

The investigation centered on Hedrick filing “false and fraudulent information” to the Indiana Medicaid program. On Nov. 13, 2023, while the state was preparing for the jury trial, a potential witness in the fraud case reportedly informed prosecutors that Hedrick had allegedly attempted to bribe them with money in exchange for meeting with them to work together on the case.

The potential witness said that Hedrick had sent them more than 20 messages pertaining to the case. Hedrick was eventually charged with one count of attempted bribery, a Level 5 felony.

Delaware County Prosecuting Attorney Eric Hoffman called Hedrick “a total disgrace to the medical profession” during the sentencing.

“Hedrick is a convicted felon and a complete, utter, and total disgrace to the medical profession. I call upon Indiana’s medical licensing board to immediately revoke his license to
practice medicine,” said Hoffman. “This prison sentence with revocation of his license to practice
medicine will save lives. I am proud of Chief Deputy Prosecutor Zach Craig and
Deputy Prosecutor Maricel Driscoll for their hard work and dedication in this case.”

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