A Watonga psychiatrist, Dr. Richard Zielinski, has agreed to pay over $170,000 to the State of Oklahoma to settle claims that he submitted false bills to the state's Medicaid program. Between January 2019 and June 2021, Zielinski allegedly "upcoded," billing for more expensive services than were actually provided to increase payments from SoonerCare. After the Oklahoma Health Care Authority, which manages SoonerCare, announced an audit of his patient records, Zielinski is said to have told his staff to create false records to support the fraudulent billing, according to the Office of the Oklahoma Attorney General.
The settlement amount is $173,143. The Office of the Oklahoma Attorney General said the claims settled are allegations, and no determination of liability has been made. Attorney General Gentner Drummond said, "I appreciate the thorough investigation completed by my team to recover funds that were wrongly taken from the State and, as a result, the taxpayers of Oklahoma." He added, "I take very seriously all allegations of false claims and will always work to hold fraudsters accountable to the law."
Assistant Attorney General Jamie Bloyd, Agent Rachel Hayward, and Nurse Analyst Laurie Hudson led the investigation into Zielinski’s case, resulting in a settlement without an admission of wrongdoing or a legal finding of fraud. Oklahoma’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, funded 75 percent by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and 25 percent by the state,...
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