MUSKEGON COUNTY, Mich. -- The Michigan Attorney General's Office says a 28-year-old woman from Muskegon County has been charged with Medicaid fraud.
The Attorney General Dana Nessel's office says 28-year-old Julia Bland of Montague allegedly submitted false claims for services that she supposedly provided to a beneficiary while working for G-T Independence. And the claims were ultimately paid by the Medicaid program.
Investigators say a SmartPhone app was used to report the dates and hours Bland supposedly provided services. But the app’s location data showed that there were instances when Bland allegedly submitted claims for services when she was not in the area of the beneficiary’s home, as reflected in timesheets filed with GT Independence.
Here are more details from the AG's news release:
"Providing Medicaid-funded in-home care is critical to keeping vulnerable people in their own homes as long as possible," said Nessel. “Caregivers who use the program to commit fraud will be held accountable.”
Bland was arraigned before Judge Molly Hennessey Greenwalt of the 54-B District Court in Ingham County. Bland was given a $50,000 bond and is due next in court for a probable cause conference on May 31st at 8:30 a.m.
The Attorney General’s Health Care Fraud Division (HCFD) handled this case for the Department. The HCFD is the federally certified Medicaid Fraud Control Unit for Michigan, and it receives 75 percent of its funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under a grant award totaling $5,541,992 for the fiscal year 2024. The remaining 25 percent, totaling $1,847,326 is funded by the State of Michigan.
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