July 22, 2010
Media Contact: Jenn Meale
Phone: (850) 245-0150
Okeechobee County Care Provider Arrested for Medicaid Fraud, Grand Theft
TALLAHASSEE, FL - Attorney General Bill McCollum today announced the arrest of an Okeechobee woman on charges that she stole more than $33,000 from the Florida Medicaid program. Gail Bohannan, 43, was arrested today by law enforcement officers with the Attorney General's Medicaid Fraud Control Unit with assistance from the Okeechobee County Sheriff’s Office.
The arrest culminated an investigation by the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, acting on information received from a Medicaid Waiver Support Coordinator. The investigation revealed that Bohannan fraudulently billed for care services on behalf of a Medicaid recipient, even though she did not provide the services. A review of the claim documents submitted by Bohannan clearly indicated the recipient’s signature was forged. When confronted, Bohannan admitted that she fraudulently signed the recipient’s name on the documents.
Bohannan is being held at the Okeechobee County jail. She is charged with one count of grand theft, a second-degree felony, and one count of Medicaid fraud, a third-degree felony. If convicted, she faces up to 20 years in prison and a $15,000 fine. The case will be prosecuted by the State Attorney’s Office for the 19th Judicial Circuit.