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Bridgeport resident Nikkita Chesney, a former employee of a health care provider in Bridgeport, pleaded guilty this week to one count of health care fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft for stealing the information from the patients which led to the billing of Medicaid for services never provided.
In May 2012, Chesney was employed by a healthcare provider that offered substance abuse treatment, including a detoxification program, when she was approached by Juliet Jacob and another person.
At the time, the pair operated two businesses, Transitional Development And Training and It Takes A Promise, both located on Fairfield Avenue in Bridgeport, which provided social and psychotherapy services.
Chesney admitted that, at the suggestion of the second suspect, she began to steal the identification information of Medicaid clients who were patients of her current employer.
That information included the patients’ Medicaid identification number, Social Security Numbers and dates of birth. Chesney, Jacob and the other person then used the stolen information to bill Medicaid for psychotherapy services purportedly provided by their two businesses, when the Medicaid clients had never received any services.
Chesney, 45, remains released on a $25,000 bond pending her sentencing. She faces a maximum term of 10 years in prison for health care fraud, and a mandatory consecutive sentence of two years for identity theft. She has also agreed to pay $1,364,698 in restitution. No sentencing date has been scheduled.
Earlier this month, Jacob pleaded guilty to one count of health care fraud and faces 10 years in prison. She will also pay $2,711,173 in restitution. Five others have been charged and convicted of health care fraud as part of the ongoing investigation.
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