(Rocky Hill, CT) – Chief State’s Attorney Patrick J. Griffin announced today that on May 4, 2026, the Honorable Frank A. Iannotti sentenced Carmen Berroa, age 61, of Waterbury, to 11 months in prison, execution suspended, with two years of conditional discharge for stealing from the Medicaid Program by submitting fraudulent claims for personal care assistance work she did not perform.
The defendant was sentenced in Waterbury Superior Court on one count of Larceny in the Fourth Degree, in violation of Connecticut General Statutes § 53a-125, and one count of Health Insurance Fraud in violation of Connecticut General Statutes § 53-442, both Class A misdemeanors. The defendant was ordered not to act as a provider in the Medicaid program. Berroa also paid $13,153.59 in restitution.
By being found guilty of program-related misdemeanors, the defendant also is subject to exclusion as a health care provider to certain federally funded health programs pursuant to federal and state laws and regulations. Medicaid is a government program that provides health coverage to low-income, disabled and elderly individuals, and is financed by both the federal and state governments and administered by the Connecticut Department of Social Services.
The Personal Care Assistance Waiver program and the Adult Family Living Waiver program are joint federal and state-funded Medicaid programs which provide recipients who have permanent, severe and chronic disabilities, funds to hire personal care assistants to physically assist them with daily self-care activities that enable them to reside in their homes and remain in the community. The Adult Family Living program, which is funded through the Connecticut Homecare Program for Elders, offers financial assistance and support to family members or a friend who act as a primary in-home caregiver for elderly individuals.
According to the arrest warrant affidavit, Berroa enrolled as a personal care assistant for a recipient in October of 2023. The recipient then relocated to the Dominican Republic in December 2023. Between the dates of December 6, 2023, to August 6, 2025, while the recipient was out of the country, Berroa submitted fraudulent time sheets and received payments totaling $13,153.59 for 243 dates of service she did not provide.
The case was investigated and prosecuted by the Connecticut Medicaid Fraud Control Unit. The Unit is grateful for the assistance it received from the Connecticut Department of Social Services, Office of Quality Assurance – Special Investigations Division, and the Waterbury Police Department.
The Connecticut Medicaid Fraud Control Unit receives 75 percent of its funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under a grant award totaling $2,612,588.00 for the fiscal year of October 1, 2025, through September 30, 2026. The remaining 25 percent, totaling $870,858.00 for the same fiscal year, is funded by the State of Connecticut.
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.