Woman Convicted Of Defrauding Medicaid For $2.5 Million Gets Jail Time

A former teacher who owned a home health agency has been sentenced to serve 18 months in jail for stealing about $2.5 million from the Massachusetts Medicaid program.

The state attorney general's office says 48-year-old Hellen Kiago was sentenced last week after being convicted earlier this month of false claims and larceny charges.

The Sturbridge woman fraudulently billed MassHealth through her home health agency, Lifestream Healthcare Alliance. They say she billed for unauthorized services and had employees assist patients for longer than necessary, then falsify documents to hide wrongdoing.

Kiago was sentenced to two years behind bars, with 18 months to serve and the remainder suspended for a year. She and her company were also ordered to pay $130,000 in fines, and restitution in an amount to be determined.