Local counselor pays $25,000 to settle Medicaid fraud suit

A Cape Girardeau counselor has paid $25,000 to settle a 2014 Medicaid fraud suit, Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster announced Friday.

In February, Koster filed a 15-count lawsuit alleging Jennifer Kirchhoff engaged in improper billing practices that netted her $8,062 more than she was entitled to receive for family and individual therapy sessions.

The suit had sought $912,248 in restitution, damages and penalties if the court found Kirchhoff acted deliberately or $16,124 plus prosecution costs if it found she acted unknowingly.

Under the terms of the settlement, Kirchhoff paid $8,062 in restitution, $14,438 in damages and civil penalties and $2,500 for investigative costs, according to a news release from Koster's office.

The settlement also required Kirchhoff to stop participating in Missouri's Medicaid program, the release stated.

Under Missouri law, Medicaid providers cannot submit a separate claim for each participant in a family therapy session. Instead, they must bill for only one family therapy session per family per day.

Fourteen of the 15 counts accused Kirchhoff of billing Medicaid separately for each participant family therapy sessions involving 14 families.

The last count of Koster's suit alleged Kirchhoff billed the state for a family therapy session and an individual psychotherapy session involving patients who were hospitalized on the dates she claimed to have provided the services.

Neither Kirchhoff nor the attorney listed for her in online court records could be reached for comment Friday afternoon.

Under state law, individuals who report Medicaid fraud can receive up to 10 percent of the money recovered as a result of the information they provide, the release stated.

To report suspected Medicaid fraud, call 800-286-3932 or visit ago.mo.gov.

epriddy@semissourian.com

388-3642

Pertinent address:

Cape Girardeau, MO