The owners of a Central Florida medical transportation company are facing charges that they fraudulently billed the Medicaid program more than $275,000.
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An investigation by the state Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Enforcement Division identified Deborah Behnke, 50, as the owner of Pioneer Medical Transportation LLC, which had a contract with the state of Florida, according to court records filed in Seminole County. Suman Bhattacharjee, 37, has been identified. Medicaid non-emergency medical transportation providers take Medicaid recipients to methadone treatment facilities and return them to their homes.
According to their arrest warrants, the couple billed the Medicaid program a total of $276,377 in false NEMT claims between March 8, 2021, and December 31, 2022.
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The attorney general’s office first received a complaint about Pioneer Medical Transportation on April 27, according to the warrant, noting that the company’s employees “used the service to allow Medicaid patients to bill their transportation costs to Medicaid.” We are paying them to continue doing so.”
The complaint alleges that the company’s employees “posed as patients or patients’ family members” in order to book appointments for the company’s services.
During questioning, the complainant told investigators that Behnke owned the company and that Bhattacharjee, known as Behnke’s “part-time mistress,” according to the report, was running the company.
The tipster told investigators that Bhattacharjee intended to call insurance companies for himself or herself or on behalf of Medicaid recipients to book transportation to and from medical appointments, but instead claimed benefits from Medicaid. However, he said he was not necessarily able to complete his planned trip.
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Investigators said the tipster told Mr. Bhattacharjee that he would pay actual Medicaid recipients whose trips had not been completed to ensure they could continue using the company’s services. . Investigators say the payments do not actually provide transportation to Medicaid recipients, but are also intended to provide some income in exchange for using their Medicaid information to bill the program. It is said that he was
Investigators said the informant went on to say that many of the Medicaid recipients Bhattacharjee used were victims of opioid addiction through a methadone program intended to help people wean from drugs.
Long-term analysis using Florida Medicaid billing and claims records, Medicaid recipient medical records, substance abuse treatment center attendance records, law enforcement reports, bank records, cell phone data, witness statements, and other evidence. After a lengthy investigation, OAG found that Mr. Behnke and Mr. Bhattacharjee apparently falsified documents to fraudulently bill the Medicaid program for “services not provided,” and fraudulently used Medicaid information in exchange for actual Medicaid recipients. offered a “rebate.”
State investigators determined there was probable cause to issue arrest warrants for both Behnke and Bhattacharjee, records show. They also obtained search warrants for both Oviedo homes.
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Bhattacharjee was booked into the Seminole County Jail on Wednesday on one count of Medicaid provider fraud and one count of conspiracy to defraud. He was later released on bail totaling $40,000.
Behnke has not yet been arrested.
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