Attorney General Christopher S. Porrino and the Office of the Insurance Fraud Prosecutor (OIFP) announced today that the owner of a Hudson County medical equipment supply store has pleaded guilty to fraudulently billing the Medicaid program more than $100,000 for medical supplies never provided to patients.
Alfredo Valdes, Jr., who owns T-N-T medical supplies in West New York, pleaded guilty to second-degree charges of health care claims fraud and theft by deception in a hearing before Superior Court Judge Mitzy Galis-Menendez in Hudson County. Under the terms of the plea agreement, the State will recommend that the 42-year-old Clifton resident be sentenced to four years in state prison. Valdes will also pay $101,000 in restitution to Horizon New Jersey Health, and sign a consent order agreeing to lifetime disbarment from participation as a provider in the New Jersey Medicaid program.
“Stealing from a program that provides financial assistance to those who cannot afford health insurance or health care services is not only a crime, it’s a disgrace,” said Attorney General Porrino. “This guilty plea ensures that the defendant will be held accountable for his actions and will never again be in a position to divert resources from those who truly need it.”
In pleading guilty, Valdes admitted that between January 2008 and March 2016 he fraudulently submitted claims totaling more than $100,000 to Horizon NJ Health, a provider of Medicaid services in the state. The claims falsely stated that Valdes had distributed durable medical equipment – including compression stockings, diapers and other items - to patients who, in fact, had died prior to the dates of the purported distributions.
Valdes is scheduled to be sentenced on January 5, 2018.