Press Releases
05/12/2021
Rocky Hill Woman Charged With Filing Fraudulent Medicaid Claims
A Rocky Hill woman is expected to appear in court this week following her arrest earlier this month on charges that she fraudulently billed the government’s Medicaid health insurance program by submitting billings and receiving payments for services not provided.
Ella Rosario, aka Ella Connors, age 47, of Rocky Hill was arrested on May 7 by Inspectors from the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit (MFCU) in the Office of the Chief State’s Attorney and 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, and Health Insurance Fraud.
According to the arrest warrant affidavit, Ella Rosario, a participant in the state’s Personal Care Assistance Program, hired a personal care assistant (PCA) to provide home care services to her. Instead, she entered into an agreement with the PCA to bill the program for services never provided. Rosario would approve fake billings for hours worked and when the PCA received payment, he would split the proceeds with Rosario. When the PCA stopped submitting time sheets, Rosario continued to submit time sheets in his name without his knowledge and received all the proceeds herself. Between December 2017 and December 2018, the Medicaid program was bilked out of $20,126.95
The submission of claims to the Department of Social Services provided by Rosario contained, false, incomplete, deceptive or misleading information which constitutes the crime of Health Insurance Fraud. Her agreement with the PCA to split unlawful payments for services not provided constitutes Conspiracy to Commit Larceny in the First Degree by Defrauding a Public Community. The amount of money profited by her in the amount of $20,126.95, constitutes the crime of Larceny in the First Degree by Defrauding a Public Community.
Rosario was released on a $20,000 non-surety bond, and is scheduled to appear in Hartford Superior Court, G.A. No. 14, on May 13, 2021. The charges are merely accusations and she is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Larceny in the First Degree by Defrauding a Public Community is a class B felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison. Conspiracy to commit Larceny in the First Degree by Defrauding a Public Community is a class B felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison. Health Insurance Fraud is an unclassified felony punishable by up to 5 years in prison.
The case will be prosecuted by the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit. The Unit is grateful for the assistance it received in the investigation from the State Department of Social Services Office of Quality Assurance, the state Attorney General’s Office, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General, and the New Britain Police Department.
Anyone with knowledge of suspected fraud or abuse in the public healthcare system is asked to contact the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit at the Chief State’s Attorney’s Office at 860-258-5986.