Office of the Attorney General: Passaic County Woman Sentenced for Health Insurance Fraud

FROM THE OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL

August 06, 2008

Contact: Division of Criminal Justice
609-292-4791


TRENTON Attorney General Anne Milgram and Criminal Justice Director Deborah L. Gramiccioni announced that a Passaic County woman has been sentenced for using another person’s health insurance card without the person’s knowledge to fraudulently obtain benefits.

According to Insurance Fraud Prosecutor Greta Gooden Brown, Jacqueline Goodwin, 45, of Paterson, was sentenced on Aug. 1 to serve 180 days in the county jail as a condition to three years of probation by Superior Court Judge Philip H. Mizzone Jr. in Passaic County. She pleaded guilty to a charge of theft by deception contained in an October 2007 indictment.

In pleading guilty on May 13, Goodwin admitted that between November 2004 and June 2005, she used the insurance beneficiary card of her neighbor to obtain health insurance coverage to which she was not entitled for surgery and treatment at the Foot and Ankle Institute of North Jersey. An investigation by the Office of Insurance Fraud Prosecutor revealed that the neighbor was a Paterson Board of Education employee. As a result of the fraud, Horizon paid $6,134 for the claims, unaware that Goodwin was impersonating a beneficiary to obtain treatment.

Detective Christine Barclay and Deputy Attorney General Cheryl A. Maccaroni were assigned to the investigation. Maccaroni represented the Office of Insurance Fraud Prosecutor at sentencing.

This case was referred to OIFP by the Special Investigative Unit of Horizon Blue Cross/Blue Shield which initially uncovered the fraud and assisted OIFP in the investigation. Insurance Fraud Prosecutor Brown thanked Horizon for their involvement in this matter.

The Office of Insurance Fraud Prosecutor was established by the Automobile Insurance Cost Reduction Act of 1998. The office is the centralized state agency that investigates and prosecutes both civil and criminal insurance fraud, as well as Medicaid fraud.