Press Release  Three Defendants Plead Guilty in Personal Care Attendant Fraud Cases

BOSTON — Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell announces today that defendants in three separate criminal cases have pleaded guilty to schemes to defraud the MassHealth program.  The schemes, while separate, all involved billing for services from a personal care attendant (PCA) that were never provided.

Amy Sutherland (a.k.a. Amy Petrucelli), 51, of Worcester, pleaded guilty to the charges of Medicaid False Claims (1 count) and Larceny over $1,200 (1 count), admitting that she stole $36,000 from the MassHealth program. Sutherland was sentenced to one year committed in a House of Correction for each charge, to be fulfilled concurrently. The AG’s Office alleged that from August 2017 to August 2019, Sutherland falsely submitted timesheets for PCA services provided by her to herself by using her maiden name, “Amy Petrucelli.” MassHealth does not permit individuals to provide PCA services to themselves.

Troy Fortin, 51, of New Bedford, pleaded guilty to the charges of Larceny over $1,200 (2 counts) and Medicaid False Claims (2 counts) and was sentenced to two years in a House of Correction, with the sentence suspended for three years. The court also prohibited Fortin from participating in the PCA program. The AG’s Office alleged that, from 2015 to 2020, Fortin fraudulently submitted timesheets to MassHealth for $49,000 worth of PCA services he did not receive from two PCAs, including while the PCAs were hospitalized or working at other jobs.

Angelica Pierni, 32, of Plymouth, pleaded guilty to the charges of Medicaid False Claims (1 count) and Larceny over $1,200 (1 count), in connection with allegations that she submitted false PCA timesheets reflecting hours for which Pierni was actually working for different employer, causing MassHealth to pay out nearly $53,000 in false claims. Pierni was sentenced to two years of probation, required to pay full restitution to MassHealth, and prohibited from working in the PCA program.

The MassHealth PCA program helps individuals with chronic or long-term disabilities live independently. MassHealth funds pay PCAs who help disabled MassHealth members with activities of daily living. MassHealth members receiving the services act as the PCA’s employer and are responsible for hiring and training their own PCAs, unless they appoint a surrogate to do so. 

The Sutherland and Fortin matters were prosecuted by Assistant Attorney General William Champlin IV of the AG’s Medicaid Fraud Division with substantial assistance from the Office of Inspector General, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The Pierni matter was prosecuted by Assistant Attorney General Scott Grannemann and Investigators Vanessa Asiatidis and Fatima Tanveer of the AG’s Medicaid Fraud Division, with substantial assistance from Victim Witness Advocate Lia Panetta. MassHealth provided assistance with all three of these investigations.

These cases were pursued in response to high levels of reported fraud and abuse in the PCA program. The AG’s Office focuses its efforts on investigating and prosecuting PCA fraud in order to safeguard the program and stop bad actors. For example, in December 2022, the AG’s Office indicted two individuals, including Pierni, for allegedly billing MassHealth nearly $200,000 in PCA services that were never provided. Similarly, in June and September 2022, a Medford man and Lowell man were found guilty and sentenced to jail in separate cases for defrauding MassHealth by billing for over $100,000 of PCA services not rendered.

Members of the public who are aware of similar practices by those involved in the PCA program or by other health care providers should call the Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Division at (617) 963-2360 or file a complaint through the Attorney General’s website.

The Massachusetts Medicaid Fraud Division receives 75 percent of its funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under a grant award totaling $5,542,963 for Federal fiscal year 2023. The remaining 25 percent, totaling $1,847,641 for FY 2023, is funded by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

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