A Wichita woman was ordered today to repay more than $7,000 to the Kansas Medicaid program after pleading guilty to Medicaid fraud-related charges, Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt said.
Bounloeum Thongsophaphone, 33, pleaded guilty in July in Sedgwick County District Court to one count of unlawful acts concerning computers. Judge David J. Kaufman today ordered Thongsophaphone to repay $7,440.56 to the Kansas Medicaid Program in addition to sentencing her to 18 months probation. 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 found that Thongsophaphone used Medicaid’s computerized timekeeping system to falsely bill the program for home health care services for two clients at the same time, while her clients were not in the same location or while Thongsophaphone was working at a nail salon.
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. Today’s sentencing brings to a close the fifth case in this joint effort to crack down on those who take advantage of these federal and state administered healthcare programs. More than $267,000 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 Stefani Hepford of Schmidt’s office prosecuted the case against Thongsophaphone.
