Attorney General William H Sorrell has announced that Jennifer Newsome, age 50, of Ludlow, Vermont, was arraigned on June 23, 2015, in Vermont Superior Court for Windsor County on two felony counts of Medicaid Fraud and three felony counts of False Pretenses. The court imposed conditions of release governing Ms. Newsome’s conduct while the case is pending.
According to papers filed in court, Ms. Newsome is accused of submitting claims for payments in excess of $30,000 for providing care under Vermont Medicaid’s Children’s Personal Care Services Program waiver program, as the employer of record, in the name of two individuals when, in fact, the individuals were unaware of the claims and did not provide all of the claimed care. Court papers also state that Ms. Newsome allegedly caused those individuals’ signatures to be signed on these claims, for the claims to reference addresses for those individuals that were the same as the address listed for Ms. Newsome, and that Ms. Newsome wrongfully obtained the payments for the claims. Ms. Newsome pled not guilty to the charges. The Medicaid Fraud charges carry a maximum penalty of up to ten years imprisonment and/or fines equal to twice the amount of payments wrongfully obtained. The False Pretense charge carries a maximum penalty of up to ten years imprisonment and/or a fine of up to $2,000.
Vermont AG: Jun 26, 2015