Stratford health agency paying $5.25 million to settle fraud claims

Stratford-based Family Care Visiting Nurse and Home Care Agency and its owners, David and Rita Krett, have agreed to pay $5.25 million to the state and federal government to settle claims that it bilked the Medicaid system by falsely billing for services, according to Attorney General George Jepsen and U.S. Attorney Deirdre M. Daly.

Jepsen said a three-year investigation by his office and the Department of Social Services found that the agency, which also has offices in Norwalk and in other towns around the state, asked employees who were not registered nurses to do work that state and federal Medicaid rules require to be done by registered nurses. The company then submitted bills for government Medicaid reimbursement as if the work had been done by registered nurses.

Authorities said the agency also engaged in “flipping” patients eligible for both Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement in order to take advantage of less restrictive Medicaid reimbursement requirements.

Of the $5.25 million, the state will receive about $3.1 million.

Family Care Visiting Nurse and Home Care Agency provides home health services in Fairfield, Hartford, Middlesex and New Haven counties.