JENKS TWP., Pa. (EYT) — A Marienville woman is facing felony fraud and theft charges after allegedly billing Medicaid for personal care services that she never provided.
Court documents indicate the Pennsylvania Office of the State Attorney General filed criminal charges against 54-year-old Shirley Ann Renton, of Marienville.
According to a criminal complaint, a Special Agent for the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General, Medicaid Fraud Control Section was assigned to investigate an allegation that personal care attendant Shirley Renton billed for services that were not provided to two Medical Assistance consumers.
The agent obtained Shirley Renton’s Public Partnership, LLC (PPL) timesheets and billing summaries for care that she allegedly provided to two individual from an employee at PPL. Furthermore, the agent obtained Shirley Renton’s timesheets from Care Unlimited Inc., County Homemakers Inc., NHS Human Services Inc., and Project Starphish. Lastly, the agent obtained one of the individual’s inpatient records from Penn Highlands Brookville and Penn Highlands DuBois.
An Analyst for the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General, Medicaid Fraud Control Section, compared the timesheets, billing summaries, and inpatient records, and determined the following:
– From June 15, 2013, to January 1, 2016, Shirley Renton billed PPL for 766.16 hours of services rendered to one individual, which overlapped with the same hours Shirley Renton worked for her other employers. The monetary value of the fraud amounted to $8,236.22.
– From September 11, 2015, to October 29, 2015, Shirley Renton billed PPL for 35.47 hours of services rendered to another individual, which overlapped with the same hours that the individual was in the hospital. The monetary value of the fraud amounted to $382.72.
– From September 23, 2016, to March 3, 2017, Shirley Renton billed PPL for 172 hours of services rendered to one individual which overlapped with the same hours she worked for another individual. The monetary value of the fraud amounted to $1,890.28.
– In total, from June 15, 2013, to March 3, 2017, Shirley Renton fraudulently billed PPL for 973.63 hours of services not rendered to two individuals. The total monetary value of the fraud amounted to $10,509.22.
The agent interviewed Renton and confronted her about the fraudulent billing. Renton said that after her divorce, she got stuck with $100,000.00 in bills. She stated that she was aware of the double-billing because she became overwhelmed with debt. The agent told Renton that she double-billed for 973.63 hours, and she replied, “Oh God, dear God, I did not think I overbilled that much,” according to the complaint.
Based on the investigation, Renton was arraigned at 11:00 a.m. on Monday, April 2, in Magisterial District Judge Daniel L. Miller’s office on the following charges:
– False/Fraud Medical Assistance Claim, Felony 3
– Theft By Deception-False Impression, Felony 3
She is currently free on $15,000.00 unsecured bail.
A preliminary hearing is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. on Tuesday, May 8, with Judge Miller presiding.
