A Wichita woman was ordered yesterday to repay more than $19,000 to the Kansas Medicaid Program after pleading guilty to Medicaid fraud-related charges, Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt said.
Vinnie Timmons, 56, pleaded guilty in January in Sedgwick County District Court to one count of making a false claim to the Kansas Medicaid program. Judge David Kaufman yesterday ordered Timmons to repay $19,189 to the Kansas Medicaid Program. Judge Kaufman also sentenced Timmons to 12 months probation with an underlying sentence of six months in prison. Convictions such as this one also result in a period during which the defendant is prohibited from being paid wages through a government health care program.
An investigation revealed that Timmons billed Medicaid for providing personal care attendant services for two consumers during the same time she was clocked in and working at a care home and a public school. The consumers did not receive the services. The crime occurred between January 2013 and October 2014.
The case was part of “Operation No Show,” a cooperative effort between the attorney general’s office and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services/Office of Inspector General to investigate fraudulent billing to Medicaid for personal care services provided in Medicaid beneficiaries’ homes. Yesterday’s sentencing brings to a close the 10th case in this joint effort to crack down on those who take advantage of these federal and state administered healthcare programs. More than $361,000 in restitution payable to the Kansas Medicaid program has been ordered as a result of these efforts.
Other joint investigations are ongoing. The cases are being jointly investigated by federal and state authorities and prosecuted by the attorney general’s Medicaid Fraud and Abuse Division. Assistant Attorney General Alma Heckler of Schmidt’s office prosecuted the case against Timmons.
