Illinois Man Charged with Using Fake Nursing Credentials Employed
by Three Healthcare Facilities
Failure to verify the licensing credentials, work history, and criminal background status of potential workers before employing them may result in failure to identify fraudulent behavior, with the submission of false claims.
Compliance Perspective – Background Checks
Policies/Procedures: The Compliance and Ethics Officer with the Administrator and Human Resources Manager will review the policies and procedures for verifying the licenses and certifications of potential employees to ensure against employing unlicensed or excluded persons.
Training: The Compliance and Ethics Officer will ensure that the Human Resources Manager and all other Department Managers are trained to verify an individualās licensure, certification, or criminal background before they begin their employment.
Audit: The Compliance and Ethics Officer should personally conduct a periodic audit to verify that the licensure and certifications of staff are valid and up-to-date, and that staff are not excluded by Medicare and Medicaid for any reason.
Healthcare fraud, aggravated identity theft, and Social Security fraud were the federal charges to which a 37-year-old man already in prison recently pleaded guilty in a U.S. District Court.
The defendant used the identity of a Texas nurse to obtain employment with a healthcare staffing company that assigned him to work at two nursing homes before a drug test revealed he was taking amphetamines. As a result, he was terminated. Two days later, the defendant applied for a position as the assistant director of nursing at a 122-bed nursing home using bogus credentials, education, and work history. It is not known how long he worked at this facility.
In addition to the employment he obtained using stolen identities, the defendant also used the personal information stolen from others to obtain credit card accounts, insurance, a car loan, passport, driverās license, and a bank account. However, when he tried to get cash by using two checks from the nursing home where he was working, he was arrested and now faces a possible forgery charge along with the federal charges.
