NYC to Settle False Medicaid Claims for $1.4M; Whistleblower to Get $206K

New York City (NYC) has agreed to pay $1.37 million to resolve allegations that the city’s Department of Education (DOE) violated the False Claims Act by submitting false claims to Medicaid, the Department of Justice announced earlier this week.

Medicaid pays DOE a flat fee of $223 for each student to whom DOE provides at least two psychological counseling sessions in a calendar month. Half of that money comes from the federal government. DOE is not entitled to any payment if an individual student receives fewer than two counseling sessions in a month. The United States alleged that the DOE knowingly billed Medicaid for counseling services to individual students, even though it provided fewer than two counseling sessions per month to those students.

The lawsuit was originally filed by Dana Ohlmeyer, a DOE social worker, under the whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act.  The False Claims Act allows private parties with knowledge of fraud against the government to sue on behalf of the government and share in the recovery. Ohlmeyer will receive a total of $206,250 as her portion of the settlement.

The Chanler Group, in association with the Hirst Law Group, represents whistleblowers who take action under the False Claims Act to report fraud committed against the federal and state governments.  We have years of experience representing whistleblower clients who expose every kind of fraud against the government, including health care fraud, contract fraud, and tax fraud.  Read more about our expertise in False Claims Act cases and how you can take action.