The Department of Justice (DOJ) recently unsealed an indictment in federal court in Brooklyn, New York, that charges eight defendants for their alleged roles in a scheme to defraud Medicaid. According to the indictment, the defendants allegedly defrauded the program of roughly $86 million by operating two Brooklyn-based social adult day cares and a home health care financial intermediary that were all paying kickbacks and bribes for services that were not provided.
Indictment Allegations
According to the indictment, starting around October 2017, Zakia Khan and Ahsan Ijaz owned and operated the two social adult day cares – Happy Family Social Adult Day Care, Inc. (Happy Family) and Family Social Adult Day Care, Inc. (Family Social) – as well as the financial intermediary – Responsible Care Staffing, Inc. All three companies were part of the New York Medicaid Consumer Directed Personal Assistance Program (CDPAP), which allows family members of Medicaid recipients to receive payment for helping Medicaid recipients with activities of daily living.
The indictment alleges that, in exchange for various kickbacks and bribes, marketers Elaine Antao, Omneah Hamdi, and Manal Wasef referred Medicaid recipients to Happy Family, Family Social and/or Responsible Care. The marketers then, in turn, allegedly paid kickbacks and bribes to Medicare recipients for social adult day care and other CDPAP services that Happy Family, Family Social and Responsible Care billed to Medicaid but were either: (1) not provided or (2) were induced by kickbacks and bribes. Two additional defendants – Ansir Abassi and Amran Hashmi – managed the relationship between Happy Family and Family Social and the marketers. Seema Memon, an employee of Happy Family who was previously charged in July 2024, was also indicted for conspiracy to commit health care fraud.
The government goes on to allege in the indictment that most of the New York Medicaid recipients that were enrolled at either of the adult social day cares were paid illegal cash kickbacks and bribes and did not actually even visit the day cares or receive CDPAP services arranged through Responsible Care on the dates of service as claimed to New York Medicaid/Managed Long Term Care plans.
Individual Charges
Khan is charged with conspiracy to commit health care fraud, health care fraud, conspiracy to defraud the United States and to pay and receive health care kickbacks, paying health care kickbacks, conspiracy to commit money laundering and money laundering. Abassi, Antao, Hamdi and Ijaz are charged with conspiracy to commit health care fraud, conspiracy to defraud the United States and to pay and receive health care kickbacks, conspiracy to commit money laundering and money laundering. Hashmi is charged with conspiracy to commit health care fraud, health care fraud, conspiracy to defraud the United States and to pay and receive health care kickbacks and paying health care kickbacks. Memon is charged with conspiracy to commit health care fraud, conspiracy to defraud the United States and to pay and receive health care kickbacks and paying health care kickbacks. Finally, Wasef is charged with conspiracy to commit health care fraud and conspiracy to defraud the United States and to pay and receive health care kickbacks.
DOJ Comment
“As alleged in the indictment, these defendants orchestrated a years-long scheme to defraud Medicaid of tens of millions of dollars for social adult day care and home care services for seniors that they did not provide,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri, head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “The defendants allegedly paid cash bribes and kickbacks to recruiters and Medicaid recipients as part of a scheme to enrich themselves at the expense of vital programs for senior citizens. Today’s charges make clear that the Criminal Division will not tolerate schemes that brazenly steal from federal health care programs.”