Georgia AG announces Brookhaven woman convicted in $305K Medicaid fraud scheme
According to Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr's office, Teresa Renee Owens owned RJ Shepherd II, Inc, which was doing business as Better Home Healthcare of Georgia.
The company provided behavioral health therapy services to children and adults and was enrolled in Medicaid.
'While operating this business, Owens directed the submission of false claims to the Georgia Medicaid program on a repetitive basis' and had her staff create patient records with fake information in them to support the fraudulent claims, the AG's office said.
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'The funds derived from this scheme, $305,685.75″ were then put into personal bank accounts owned by Owens.
On March 31, Owens pled guilty in DeKalb County Superior Court to one count of Medicaid fraud, one count of false writings and one count of identity fraud.
She was sentenced to 10 years, with one year served in prison and the other nine on probation, according to Carr's office.
Additionally, Owens had a restitution hearing on April 28, where a judge ordered her to pay $305,685.75 back to the Georgia Medicaid program.
'Medicaid Fraud isn't a victimless crime – it's theft of taxpayer dollars and it undermines a system meant to care for our most vulnerable Georgians,' Carr said in a statement. 'As this case shows, we will not hesitate to hold accountable those who use their positions to exploit our Medicaid program. Rest assured, if you're a provider attempting to game the system, you will be identified, prosecuted, and ordered to pay back every dollar you stole.'
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