Three Indicted on Healthcare Fraud Charges

ABINGDON, VIRGINIA – A federal grand jury, sitting in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia in Abingdon, has indicted three individuals with healthcare fraud charges, United States Attorney John P. Fishwick Jr. and Virginia Attorney General Mark R. Herring announced today.

The grand jury has charged Deborah Branch, 64, Melissa Harr, 49 and Bryan Harr Sr., 40, all of Bristol, Virginia, with one count of health care fraud, one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud, and two counts of wire fraud. 

According to the indictment, Melissa and Bryan Harr Sr., hired Branch to work with one of their children, who suffers from intellectual and physical disabilities and who qualifies for services paid for by Virginia Medicaid, including personal assistance, respite and residential support services.  These services are available to qualified individuals pursuant to Virginia Medicaid’s Intellectual Disability (ID) waiver program.  The ID waiver program is designed to provide critical services that enable a recipient to remain at home instead of being placed in an institution.  Recipients or their guardians are permitted to hire workers of their own choosing to provide these services which are paid for by Virginia Medicaid.  Branch was paid through two different Virginia Medicaid contractors:  Public Partnerships, LLC and ResCare (formerly known as Creative Family Solutions). 

The indictment states that from January 2010 until September 2015, Branch, with the knowledge of Melissa Harr and Bryan Harr Sr., submitted time sheets claiming Branch was providing services for Harr’s disabled son when she was not. In exchange for assisting Branch in getting paid for work she did not do, Branch paid the Harrs approximately $200 every two weeks.  Virginia Medicaid’s Department of Medical Assistance Services (DMAS) paid out $350,641.02 to the contractors based on these time sheets, of which $207,854.43 was paid to Branch.  More importantly, the Harr’s disabled son did not receive the services he legitimately needed pursuant to the ID waiver program. 

The investigation of the case was conducted by the Medicaid fraud Control Unit of the Virginia Attorney General’s Office, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, and the Bristol Virginia Police Department.  Special Assistant United States Attorney Janine M. Myatt, a Virginia Assistant Attorney General, is prosecuting the case for the United States.