Press Releases

Caregiver Convicted For Falsely Obtaining Monies From Medicaid Program

CONTACT: Ultan Doyle, Assistant Attorney General, (802) 828-5585

September 15, 2010

Attorney General William H. Sorrell announced today that Tracy Thurston, age 40, of Fairlee, Vermont, was convicted on September 14, 2010, in Vermont Superior Court, Criminal Division, Windsor County, of four misdemeanor counts of False Pretences. The convictions stemmed from Ms. Thurston’s submission of falsified timesheets in order to obtain payment for services that were not rendered, while she was employed as a personal caregiver under a Vermont Medicaid Program.

Judge M. Patricia Zimmerman sentenced Ms. Thurston to two to four years in jail, all suspended, and placed her on two years of probation, subject to standard conditions and a special condition that she not work as a home-based provider under a Medicare Waiver program. The judge also ordered Ms. Thurston to pay $1,101.14 in restitution to the Vermont Medicaid Program.

The Office of the Inspector General assisted in the investigation of this case.