OGCC Behavioral Health Services, Inc. and Dionne Huffman, Medicaid Fraud, Georgia 2023

OGCC Behavioral Health Services, Inc. and Dionne Huffman Settle Medicaid Fraud Allegations for $750,000

ATLANTA – OGCC Behavioral Health Services, Inc. (“OGCC”) and its owner and Executive Director, Dionne Huffman, have agreed to pay $750,000 to resolve allegations that they violated the False Claims Act by, among other things, billing the government for services that they did not provide or were not provided in the way that OGCC said that they were.

“Medicaid beneficiaries have the right to receive quality care,” said U.S. Attorney Kurt Erskine.  “We will continue to prioritize cases where the provider’s actions shortchange some of the most vulnerable members of our community.”

This settlement resolves allegations in a lawsuit filed by Latashia Hawkins, a former OGCC employee, under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act, which authorizes private parties to sue for false claims on behalf of the United States and share in the recovery.  The lawsuit was filed in the Northern District of Georgia and is captioned United States and State of Georgia ex rel. Hawkins v. OGCC Behavioral Health Services, Inc., No. 1:15-cv-4380.

OGCC is a CORE Services Provider for the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities.  CORE providers are supposed to offer services to individuals who are experiencing emotional and behavioral difficulties, mental health problems, or addiction.  The government alleges that, between 2014 and 2016, OGCC falsified the identity and qualifications of the health care providers to receive reimbursement at a higher rate, inflated the amount of time spent with patients, submitted claims for patient visits that never occurred, misrepresented dates of service, and fabricated documents in response to government scrutiny.

The government alleges that OGCC and Huffman committed Medicaid Fraud. The civil settlement was reached by Assistant U.S. Attorney Austin Hall and Georgia State Assistant Attorney General Sara Vann.

Defendant:

• OGCC Behavioral Health Services, Inc.
• Dionne Huffman

Criminal Charges:

• Medicaid Fraud

City and State:

• Atlanta, Georgia

Date:

• None specified

Sentence or Outcome:

• $750,000 settlement

Dollar Amounts:

• $750,000 settlement

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

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