Nine Medicaid providers in Ohio are facing serious felony charges for allegedly bilking the system out of $1.2 million. According to reports by the Ohio Attorney General's office, these health-care workers are suspected of submitting false claims for services that they never rendered. The indictments, which resulted from investigations by the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, were filed in Franklin County Common Pleas Court.
Attorney General Dave Yost didn't mince words about the gravity of the situation, noting "Medicaid fraud is both a crime and a moral offense," he said via the Ohio Attorney General's office. "It steals from the vulnerable and undermines our values as a society." In the indictments, eight home-health aides and a mental-health specialist are incriminated. Two of those indicted are responsible for more than $1 million of the alleged fraud.
The defendants, a diverse bunch hailing from across the state, stand accused of various schemes to defraud Medicaid. Achana Brown, for instance, was caught allegedly billing for in-home services during times the patients were either hospitalized or jailed. Meanwhile, James Ferguson billed for 16 hours of services that he never provided to any of his six clients, as confirmed by the clients themselves. The financial toll of these actions is not just a figure on paper—every dollar allegedly taken was meant for the assistance of Ohio's needy.
Each case tells a similar story of deceit and manipulation of the system designed to support those in need. Desiree Reid, for example, billed for an average of 20 hours per day while surveillance showed her approaching the service recipient's home only twice. Making the situation appear even more egregious, Reid also billed Medicaid for days when she was out of state, according to the investigations. The Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, which received substantial federal funding, as reported, works to protect vulnerable adults and recoup illegally obtained funds.
