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One of three drug and alcohol counselors who were nabbed in a healthcare fraud scheme in Connecticut has been sentenced to more than two years in federal prison.
Authorities say 60-year-old Thelma “Wendy” Epps, a licensed alcohol and drug counselor (LADC) in Hartford, was suspended from participating in Medicaid in July 2018 based on a finding of “a credible allegation of fraud.”
Based on the suspension, she was not allowed to submit claims for services performed by herself, or her business, Miracles to Destiny LLC.
In 2019, however, Epps partnered with another LADC, Dennis Tomczak, who used his Medicaid provider number to bill Medicaid for services she provided, according to authorities.
In return, Epps agreed to give Tomczak a 25% cut of the Medicaid payments she received from Tomczak.
Over roughly three years, Medicaid paid Tomczak $330,547 for fraudulent claims for psychotherapy services purportedly provided by Epps, according to authorities.
Eventually, Tomczak “expressed concerns to Epps about the number and frequency of services that Epps told Tomczak she was providing,” according to the Department of Justice.
So, Epps partnered with another LADC in Connecticut, Shawn Tyson, to engage in a similar scheme. Epps helped Tyson enroll as a participating provider in Medicaid. Then Tyson gave her his login information, which Epps used to submit claims to the online portal for submitting claims to Medicaid.
Authorities say Epps and Tyson submitted thousands of claims for psychotherapy services they never actually provided.
Medicaid paid Tyson $663,081 for the fraudulent claims, authorities said.
On Jan. 31, Epps was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Kari A. Dooley in Bridgeport to 27 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release.
In November 2024, Epps pleaded guilty to healthcare fraud. She has been released on a $50,000 bond and will report to prison on March 3.
Also, Dooley ordered Epps to pay $1,001,058 in restitution to the Connecticut Medicaid program.
Tomczak, 73, of Somers has pleaded guilty to making a false statement stemming from his role in the Medicaid fraud scheme. He is awaiting sentencing.
Tyson, 54, of Bloomfield, pleaded guilty to healthcare fraud and is also awaiting sentencing.
The cases are part of the Department of Justice’s 2024 National Health Care Fraud Enforcement Action, which led to 193 defendants being charged for submitting more than $2.75 billion in alleged false medical claims.
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The Hartford Business Journal 2025 Charity Event Guide is the annual resource publication highlighting the top charity events in 2025.
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