Kenyan Mom, Daughter Plead Guilty to Medicare Fraud in Baltimore, Maryland

A practical nurse and her daughter, who are from Germantown, Maryland, pled guilty to a scheme that placed a seriously ill infant in unlicensed care, the State’s Attorney General’s office said Friday.

Licensed Practical Nurse Hellen Njeri Ngatia and her daughter, Gladys Muthoni Ngatia, pled guilty to Medicaid Fraud and Conspiracy to Commit Medicaid Fraud.

Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge Michael W. Reed sentenced Hellen Ngatia to three years incarceration, suspending all but 90 days. She was placed on three years supervised probation and ordered to perform 150 hours of community service within 18 months, the Attorney General’s office said in a press release.

Gladys Ngatia was sentenced to three years incarceration, all of which was suspended. She was placed on three years supervised probation and ordered to perform 100 hours of community service within 18 months, the press release said.

The investigation revealed that Hellen Ngatia was hired on April 19, 2009 by MBL Associates, a nurse staffing agency. She was to provide nursing care to a 16-month-old in the Rare and Expensive Case Management System, a Medicaid waiver program that is designed to provide health care to people with complex medical needs, according to the release.

According to the plea, Hellen Ngatia sent her unlicensed daughter to the client’s home to care for the infant over the next nine months; Medicaid was billed for the services of a Licensed Practical Nurse and paid MBL Associates $41,258.56.

The company self-reported the incident to the Board of Nursing and has returned the money to the Medicaid program, according to the press release.

Source: Germantown Patch