Melissa Harr Pleads Guilty to Medicaid Fraud Scheme

A Bristol, Virginia woman has admitted to running a years-long scam that stole more than $350,000 from Virginia’s Medicaid system meant to care for her disabled child. Melissa Harr, 49, pleaded guilty last week in U.S. District Court in Abingdon to one count of conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud, capping a federal investigation into fraudulent billing tied to her son’s care.

Harr, along with her husband Bryan Harr Sr., 40, and accomplice Deborah Branch, 64, both also of Bristol, orchestrated a scheme from January 2010 to September 2015 in which Branch submitted false time sheets claiming she provided personal assistance, respite, and residential support services to the Harrs’ son, who qualifies for care under Virginia Medicaid’s Intellectual Disability (ID) waiver program. The services are designed to keep disabled individuals out of institutions and in home care environments.

Despite the claims, Branch did not provide the services. Instead, she submitted falsified records through two Medicaid contractors—Public Partnerships, LLC and ResCare (formerly Creative Family Solutions)—and was paid $207,854.43 of the $350,641.02 disbursed by Virginia’s Department of Medical Assistance Services (DMAS). In return, Branch kicked back approximately $200 every two weeks to the Harrs as part of the illicit arrangement.

The fraud deprived the Harrs’ son of the very care he was entitled to under the ID waiver program. The services, meant to support those with severe disabilities, were never rendered. Investigators confirmed no evidence that the child received the personal or residential support he urgently needed, exposing a cruel betrayal at the heart of the scheme.

The case was jointly investigated by the Virginia Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, and the Bristol Virginia Police Department. The prosecution was handled by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Janine M. Myatt, a Virginia Assistant Attorney General, acting on behalf of the federal government.

Melissa Harr now faces federal sentencing for conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud. Bryan Harr Sr. and Deborah Branch remain charged and await resolution of their cases. The fraud stands as one of the most brazen abuses of Virginia’s Medicaid system in recent years, exploiting both public funds and the vulnerability of a disabled child.