In 2013, General Conway’s Medicaid Fraud Unit was named one of the most aggressive in the country by the nonprofit watchdog group Public Citizen.
Attorney General Jack Conway and his Medicaid Fraud and Abuse Control Unit have announced that a former Consumer Directed Options (CDO) employee with the Kentuckiana Regional Planning & Development Agency (KIPDA) has pleaded guilty to charges involving theft and fraud.
On Tuesday of last week, Linda Smith, 66, pleaded guilty in Jefferson Circuit Court to theft by unlawful taking under $10,000 and devising or engaging in a scheme to defraud the Kentucky Medicaid program. Smith received a three-year sentence, diverted for five years.
Smith worked as a CDO employee with KIPDA and provided care for a family member in exchange for payment from the state Medicaid program. The CDO program, which is overseen by the Kentucky Department for Aging and Independent Living, serves the non-medical home health needs of members of Kentucky’s home and community-based waiver programs and allows members to choose who provides their non-medical services. Smith is alleged to have submitted false time sheets while working as a CDO employee and received payments from Medicaid for services she did not perform, resulting in a financial loss of more than $3,700 to the Medicaid program.
This case was investigated by Attorney General Conway’s Medicaid Fraud and Abuse Control Unit and the Cabinet for Health and Family Services’ Office of the Inspector General. It was prosecuted by the Office of the Attorney General in Jefferson Circuit Court.
Medicaid Recoveries
Since Attorney General Conway took office in January 2008, his Office of Medicaid Fraud and Abuse Control has recovered or been awarded more than $260 million dollars for the state and federal Medicaid programs. These cases range from lawsuits and settlements against pharmaceutical companies to cases against individual providers.
In 2013, General Conway’s Medicaid Fraud Unit was named one of the most aggressive in the country by the nonprofit watchdog group Public Citizen.
The Attorney General’s tip line for reporting allegations of Medicaid fraud is 1-877-228-7384.
