Home health care owner pleads guilty to defrauding Georgia Medicaid

ATLANTA - Diandra Bankhead, the owner and operator of Elite Homecare (“Elite”), an Atlanta-based home healthcare provider, has pleaded guilty to defrauding Medicaid by submitting thousands of fraudulent claims for services that were never provided to medically fragile children under the Georgia Pediatric Program (“GAPP”).

“Bankhead exploited Medicaid-eligible children who suffer from significant physical and cognitive disabilities,” said U.S. Attorney Byung J. “BJay” Pak. “Her fraud included billing for services never performed and for children never seen. Georgians dependent on these types of services deserve our best, not to be used by someone who is looking to enrich themselves at their expense.”

“The greed of this defendant deprived health care to many at risk children in Atlanta, focusing on profit rather than the care of our kids,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “The FBI will not stand by and allow those who commit fraud to take advantage of programs that are intended to support our state's most vulnerable citizens.”

“This plea is another example of our strong commitment to aggressively pursue health care providers who recklessly bill the Medicaid program,” said Derrick L. Jackson, Special Agent in Charge for the Office of Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. “The OIG, our State law enforcement partners and the U.S. Attorney’s Office will continue to protect government health programs and those they serve.”

Read more: https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga/pr/home-health-care-owner-pleads-guilty-defrauding-georgia-medicaid