05/30/2019
Third Family Member Charged in Medicaid Fraud Scheme
A Rocky Hill woman was arrested today and charged with conspiring with her son and daughter-in-law to cheat the government out of thousands of dollars by billing the Medicaid program for care that was never provided to a disabled relative.
GEORGINA FELIX, age 65, of Walnut Street, Rocky Hill, was charged with one count each of Larceny in the First Degree By Defrauding A Public Community, Conspiracy to Commit Larceny in the First Degree By Defrauding A Public Community, Health Insurance Fraud and Conspiracy to Commit Health Insurance Fraud.
According to the arrest warrant affidavit, between June 2014 and May 2016, Felix approved and submitted hundreds of time sheets for her son, William Colon, and his wife, Clara Rivera Colon, who were employed as Personal Care assistants for another relative.
The couple billed nearly $56,000 for in-home care that was never provided, the warrant states. The proceeds of the bogus claims were shared with Felix or used by the Colons for various expenses including vacations, park passes and hotels. William Colon and Clara Rivera Colon were both arrested last week.
The Colons were employed by the Personal Care Assistance (PCA) program, a Medicaid program that allows disabled adults to hire assistants for daily care, thus enabling the individual to remain at home instead of being placed in a health care facility. Felix was responsible for hiring and ensuring that the Colons performed the work for which they were paid, the warrant states.
Felix was released on $75,000 non-surety bond and is scheduled to appear in Hartford Superior Court, G.A. No. 14, on June 18, 2014. The charges are merely accusations and she is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
Larceny in the First Degree By Defrauding A Public Community and Conspiracy to Commit Larceny in the First Degree By Defrauding A Public Community are class B felonies punishable by up to 20 years in prison. Health Insurance Fraud and Conspiracy to Commit Health Insurance Fraud are unclassified felonies punishable by up to 5 years in prison.
The Medicaid Fraud Control Unit is prosecuting the cases. The Unit is grateful for the assistance it received in this investigation from the state Department of Social Services Office of Quality Assurance and the New Britain Police Department.