Hamden-based practice K-Assist, owned by Kelly Stutzman, entered into a more than $234,000 civil settlement agreement with both the federal and Connecticut state government to resolve allegations that the practice violated federal and state False Claims Acts, the US Attorney’s Office for the District of Connecticut announced on Tuesday, April 18.
According to federal officials, K-Assist, a private behavioral health practice that provided in-home services in the New Haven area, submitted fraudulent claims to Medicaid for psychotherapy services.
The practice would do this by billing Medicaid for thousands of hours of services that were actually performed by unlicensed individuals, according to Connecticut Attorney General William Tong.
The investigation into K-Assist also revealed evidence of repeated billing for excessive services, including hundreds of dates where more than 12 hours of behavioral health services had been allegedly provided by Stutzman in a single day, Tong said.
In order to resolve these allegations, Stutzman and K-Assist agreed to pay $234,064.89 to reimburse the Medicaid program for the conduct, which happened between Feb. 1, 2018, and Aug. 1, 2019.