CT woman charged with filing $145K in fraudulent Medicaid claims. It was for home care services.

A Connecticut woman who owned a home care program was arrested Thursday and charged with submitting fraudulent claims to Medicaid, officials said.

Evgjeni Baca, 41, of North Haven, was taken into custody by inspectors from the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit in the Office of the Chief State’s Attorney and charged with one count of health insurance fraud and one count of first-degree larceny by defrauding a public community, according to a release from the Connecticut Division of Criminal Justice.

Between February 2019 and February 2021, Baca was the owner of Lean on Us Homecare, LLC, which was licensed to provide homemaker, companion and Personal Care Assistant services under the Connecticut Home Care Program for Elders, according to the arrest warrant affidavit. The program allows eligible individuals to continue living at home instead of being placed in a nursing home. To become eligible, applicants “must be 65 years of age or older and at risk of nursing home placement,” officials said.

According to the warrant affidavit, an investigation showed that Lean On Us Homecare personnel files did not include completed job applications, photocopies of driver’s licenses, criminal background check results or proof of mandatory training for the PCA workers.

“PCAs are required to have training to provide high-quality, person-centered-care to safeguard the health and welfare of older and disabled adults,” officials said.

The files also did not include “subjects who had criminal convictions that were not revealed to clients,” according to the warrant affidavit.

The warrant affidavit also alleged that Baca submitted billings for services rendered by her that were not rendered by her or any employee of Lean on Us Homecare. According to the warrant affidavit, Baca received $145,705.16 in payments from the Connecticut Medicaid Program by submitting the fraudulent billings.

Baca was released on a $100,000 surety bond and is scheduled to appear in Meriden Superior Court on March 7. The charges are punishable by up to 20 years in prison, the DCF said.

Anyone who suspects fraud or abuse in the public healthcare system is asked to contact the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit at the Office of the Chief State’s Attorney at 860-258-5986.