A Northeast Side man has been sentenced to 14 months in prison after admitting to participating in a Medicaid fraud scheme that required him to wear diapers.
James McFadden, 61, was found guilty of one count of Medicaid Fraud, a fourth-degree felony, in Franklin County Common Pleas Court.
Between 2010 and 2017, McFadden and his girlfriend, Sarah Evans, devised a scheme to fake a case of post-traumatic stress disorder. Evans posed as a home health-care aide and McFadden pretended to be incapable of communicating.
The couple began billing Medicaid for unneeded services in 2010, and in the nearly seven-year scam amassed more than $258,000, according to the state Attorney General’s Office.
A caseworker would visit on occasion and McFadden did not speak and wore diapers during those scheduled monthly visits. The Attorney General’s Office said in a release that Evans would speak for him.
In 2017, a caseworker saw McFadden driving a car, which caused them to become suspicious.
Additional investigation by the caseworker revealed McFadden had recently spent time in jail and had shown no signs of disabilities. McFadden had also worked as a painter.
When investigators spoke to the contractor who hired McFadden, McFadden called during the interview and told the contractor to say he hadn’t worked for him since 2007.
McFadden and Evans were both charged with multiple felonies related to the scheme. Evans died shortly after the indictments were filed and before the case was resolved.
As part of his sentence, McFadden will be required to pay back the Ohio Department of Medicaid the more than $258,000 that was received through the fraud scheme.
bbruner@dispatch.com
@bethany_bruner