A Jacksonville chiropractor has entered a federal guilty plea in federal court in Springfield for orchestrating a multi-year scheme to defraud health insurance programs by submitting fraudulent claims for chiropractic services that were never provided.
Federal prosecutors say Sean Rondeau, the former owner and sole licensed practitioner at Rondeau Chiropractic Center (RCC), which operated offices in Jacksonville and nearby White Hall, knowingly submitted false claims to health insurance companies — including Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois (BCBS) and other public and private health care benefit programs — to obtain payments for services that were not rendered.
According to the indictment handed down by a federal grand jury in June 2024, Rondeau’s fraudulent conduct began as early as October 2017 and continued through at least May 2020. Investigators allege that Rondeau used electronic billing software to transmit insurance claims for chiropractic and therapy services that either never occurred or were exaggerated beyond what was actually provided.
When BCBS requested documentation supporting certain claims in mid-2019, prosecutors say Rondeau gave several patients blank medical treatment and therapy forms and instructed them to sign the blanks and return them to RCC. Rondeau then allegedly completed the forms with fabricated services and submitted them to BCBS as evidence of treatment.
The indictment charged Rondeau with one count of healthcare fraud, three counts of mail fraud and five counts of wire fraud. The Jacksonville chiropractor’s main clinic — located at 1111 W. Morton Avenue in Cedar Commons — has since closed.
At a federal court hearing in Springfield on December 9, 2025, before U.S. District Judge Colleen R. Lawless, Rondeau formally entered a guilty plea to all counts in the superseding indictment. Rondeau’s attorney, federal public defender Robert Scherschligt, confirmed his client also consented to the forfeiture allegation included in the indictment. The forfeiture includes property and a monetary judgment of over $268,000 which the government said represented the proceeds that Rondeau allegedly gained in the scheme.
A presentence investigation and report were ordered, and sentencing was scheduled for April 14, 2026, in Springfield federal court. Mail and wire fraud are each punishable by 20 years in federal prison, a fine or both. The penalty for healthcare fraud is a maximum of 10 years in federal prison and a fine.