BRIDGEPORT, CT – Jeffrey Slocum, 56, of Johnstown, Pennsylvania, formerly of East Lyme, Connecticut, is facing the consequences for a brazen scheme to fleece the Connecticut Medicaid program. Slocum was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill to three years of probation, with the first year to be served under home confinement with electronic monitoring. The sentence follows Slocum’s August 16, 2023, guilty plea to one count of health care fraud and one count of violating the federal anti-kickback statute.
The Grimy Times has learned that Slocum, a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) who operated an office at 300 State Street in New London from 2017 to 2022, began cooking the books after being flagged for an audit. In 2020, Medicaid initiated an audit of claims Slocum had submitted for psychotherapy services between March 2018 and February 2020. The audit revealed a staggering $225,000 in payments for services Slocum couldn’t substantiate with patient records. Instead of owning up to the initial overbilling, Slocum doubled down, submitting more fraudulent claims for services he never rendered.
Court documents detail how Slocum fabricated records, claiming he personally provided the nonexistent therapy sessions. But the deception didn’t stop there. To fuel the fraud, Slocum actively solicited patients with cold, hard cash. He allegedly paid kickbacks to his Medicaid patients – in the form of cash, money orders, and gift cards from Wal-Mart and VISA – to ensure they continued receiving “services” from him, effectively turning vulnerable individuals into accomplices in his scheme. This isn’t about helping people; it’s about lining his own pockets at the expense of taxpayers.
The scheme ultimately amassed a total loss of $695,048 to the Medicaid program. Judge Underhill didn’t mince words, ordering Slocum to pay full restitution in the amount of $695,048. This isn’t just a slap on the wrist; it’s a financial burden Slocum will carry for years to come, though it won’t undo the damage he inflicted on a system designed to help those in need.
The investigation, a collaborative effort between the Office of the Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS-OIG), the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Connecticut Department of Social Services, underscores the ongoing commitment to rooting out healthcare fraud. Assistant U.S. Attorney David J. Sheldon and Auditor Susan Spiegel led the prosecution. The case was brought as part of The Medicaid Fraud Working Group, a multi-agency task force dedicated to combating fraud within the Medicaid system.
Authorities are urging anyone with information about healthcare fraud to come forward. Suspicious activity can be reported by calling 1-800-HHS-TIPS. This case serves as a stark reminder that exploiting public assistance programs will be met with swift and decisive action. Slocum thought he could get away with it. He was wrong.
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Key Facts
- State: Connecticut
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: White Collar Crime
- Source: Official Source ↗
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