Historic settlement for over 1,300 survivors of clergy and adult abuse within the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles, marking a pivotal moment for justice.
February 9, 2012
Olivia Z. Cardenas, a former employee of the Texas Medicaid system, has been sentenced along with three others for participating in a Medicaid fraud scheme that cost taxpayers over $200,000. Ms. Cardenas received the longest sentence: she is to serve 15 months in prison and to pay $53,800 in restitution. According to the San Antonio Express-News, authorities allege that Ms. Cardenas was the leader of the group involved in the fraud.
Ms. Cardenas worked in the Medicaid program’s section that pays Medicaid recipients for the cost of necessary travel to receive medical treatment. According to court records, Ms. Cardenas and a number of other former Medicaid program employees conspired to commit healthcare fraud by submitting hundreds of false claims for travel costs in the names of relatives and friends. The fraudulent claims totaled more than $212,800.
When the recipients received payment on these fraudulent claims, they shared the money with Ms. Cardenas and her then coworkers at Medicaid. Ms. Cardenas and her coworkers allegedly falsified records to cover up their actions. Internal and criminal investigations of the fraud led to their termination from the Medicaid program and their indictment for healthcare fraud, conspiracy, making false statements, and embezzlement.
Waters & Kraus is a national firm with highly skilled lawyers practicing qui tam litigation in four offices, including Dallas, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Baltimore. Our attorneys have decades of experience successfully representing whistleblowers in a variety of fraud cases. Contact us or call our attorneys at 800.226.9880 to learn more about our practice and how we can assist.
Our Results
Historic settlement for over 1,300 survivors of clergy and adult abuse within the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles, marking a pivotal moment for justice.
A Philadelphia jury awarded a record verdict against ExxonMobil for failing to warn about cancer risks due to benzene in its petroleum products.
Confidential settlement for the wife of a Rhode Island man who died of mesothelioma cancer after exposure to window glazing compound contaminated with asbestos.