Lake County Woman Sentenced in $775,000 Medicaid Scheme

(COLUMBUS, Ohio) — A Lake County woman was sentenced this morning to jail time and ordered to pay $775,000 in restitution for fraudulently billing Medicaid, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost announced.
 
“She inflated her earnings through brazen fraud, but her scheme burst wide open when our investigators got the case,” Yost said. “Cheating taxpayers comes with consequences.”  
 
Neesha Haynes, 40, of Eastlake, was sentenced to 90 days in jail and five years of community control. She also must pay restitution to the Ohio Department of Medicaid.
 
Haynes worked as a home-health aide, providing in-home care to 12 Medicaid recipients in the Cleveland area. An investigation by Yost’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit revealed frequent billing for nonexistent services, including dates when clients were hospitalized and “impossible days” in which Haynes billed Medicaid for more than 24 hours of services.
 
Attorneys with the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit prosecuted the case in Franklin County Common Pleas Court.
 
The Ohio Medicaid Fraud Control Unit receives 75% of its funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under a grant award totaling $16,553,872 for federal fiscal year 2026. The remaining 25% – totaling $5,517,956 for FY 2026 – is funded by the Ohio Attorney General’s Office.

MEDIA CONTACT:
Dominic Binkley: 614-728-4127

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