Maryland Person Pleads Guilty to Defrauding Medicaid of More than $700,000 in Plan Involving Particular Care Providers | USAO-DC

            WASHINGTON – Joseph Tamjong, 51, of Lanham, Maryland, pleaded guilty today to defrauding the D.C. Medicaid program out of $733,405. 

            The announcement was built by U.S. Legal professional Matthew M. Graves, Wayne A. Jacobs, Distinctive Agent in Charge of the FBI Washington Industry Office’s Felony Division, Maureen R. Dixon, Exclusive Agent in Demand of the U.S. Department of Health and fitness and Human Services’ Workplace of Inspector General for the area that contains Washington, D.C., and Daniel W. Lucas, Inspector Normal for the District of Columbia.

            Tamjong pleaded responsible in the U.S. District  Courtroom for the District of Columbia to health and fitness care fraud, which carries a statutory greatest penalty of 10 years in jail. Less than federal sentencing rules, Tamjong faces a most likely recommended sentence of involving 27 and 33 months in prison. He has agreed to pay $733,405 in restitution and $396,155 in a forfeiture income judgment. The Honorable Christopher R. Cooper, who recognized Tamjong’s responsible plea, scheduled sentencing for March 7, 2023.

            In courtroom files, Tamjong admitted that amongst December 2014 and February 2022, he was employed as a Personalized Treatment Aide and/or a Participant-Directed Employee to supply personal treatment aide providers to residents of the District of Columbia who required support performing actions of day-to-day living, these as obtaining in and out of bed, bathing, dressing, and taking in. Tamjong admitted that he submitted bogus timesheets that claimed he supplied these personal treatment companies when in reality he did not.

            As portion of his scheme, he even induced Medicaid to be billed for roughly 3,400 several hours of solutions that he purportedly furnished when he in fact was traveling internationally. On 156 separate occasions, he also brought about Medicaid to be billed for 24 several hours of companies that he allegedly supplied in just one day.

            The FBI, the Office of Wellness and Human Services’ Business office of Inspector Normal, the District of Columbia’s Workplace of the Inspector General’s Medicaid Fraud Handle Device, and the U.S. Attorney’s Workplace are dedicated to investigating and prosecuting individuals who defraud the D.C. Medicaid plan.

            Tamjong is the twelfth former personal treatment aide considering the fact that August 2018 to plead responsible to defrauding Medicaid in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. 6 of all those aides have been sentenced to 13 months in prison a seventh and eighth had been sentenced respectively to 15 months and 10 months.

            The authorities urges the community to give strategies and support to stop wellbeing care fraud. If you have data about men and women committing health and fitness care fraud, please contact the Section of Wellness and Human Services’ Office of Inspector Basic hotline at (800) HHS‑TIPS [(800) 447-8477] or the D.C. Office of the Inspector Normal at (800) 724-Tips [(800) 274-8477].

            This scenario is remaining prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Legal professional Kondi Kleinman with assistance from Paralegal Expert Michon Tart.