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Nicole Steiner, age 32, of Stratford, was arrested on Monday, May 2, and charged with committing health care fraud, according to Leonard Boyle, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut.
Steiner had pleaded guilty on April 28, 2021, in a separate health care fraud case, Boyle said.
Following her arrest on Monday, she was released into home detention under electronic monitoring on a $250,000 bond, according to the announcement.
The health care fraud charge she pleaded guilty to was related to her operation of Helping Hands Academy, LLC, in Bridgeport, which offered applied behavior analysis services to children diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder, Boyle said.
The business was enrolled as a provider in the Connecticut Medicaid Program, and between December of 2018 and October of 2020, Steiner submitted fraudulent claims to Medicaid for services that she claimed were provided to clients on dates where no applied behavior analysis services were provided to those clients, the US Attorney's Office said.
Boyle said Steiner also inflated the number of hours for claims where the service had been provided to clients.
The Connecticut Department of Social Services terminated Helping Hands Academy as a provider, and Steiner submitted altered documents to the department and made false attempts to try to rescind the termination and receive payment for claims, the US Attorney's Office said.
Boyle said Medicaid suffered a loss of $551,311.85 due to Steiner’s conduct.
Steiner was released on a $50,000 pending sentencing after she pleaded guilty, Boyle said.
While awaiting sentencing, it's alleged that she was a silent partner in the company that provided applied behavior analysis services called New Beginnings Children’s Behavioral Health LLC, the report said.
She and the company are accused of engaging in health care fraud, billing Medicaid for thousands of dollars in services that weren't rendered, Boyle said.
The investigation is being conducted by the US Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
The US Attorney's Office said those who suspect health care fraud can report it by calling 1-800-HHS-TIPS.
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