State Worker Is Accused of Medi-Cal Bribes

The first state worker to be implicated in the FBI’s investigation of Medi-Cal fraud was accused Tuesday of accepting bribes from doctors who submitted false billings to the program.

U.S. Atty. Paul Seave filed bribery charges against Mildred V. Jackson, 51, a veteran state worker who was in charge of processing applications from doctors seeking to enroll in the program.

Jackson, an office technician in the Department of Health Services, was accused of accepting $1,000 bribes on six occasions in return for expediting applications so doctors would not have to wait the normal 30 days before submitting claims.

Assistant U.S. Atty. Daniel Linhardt said her actions allowed the doctors to file false claims much sooner than they could have if she had followed normal procedures.

Medi-Cal provides medical services for the poor. Linhardt said several other government employees are under investigation and he expects to file charges in those cases in the next few months.

“Unfortunately this is not the last state worker,” he said, “that we anticipate prosecuting.”

He said Jackson was not part of any organized fraud ring but appeared to be acting as an “independent entrepreneur.” He said she was brought to the attention of federal authorities by Medi-Cal providers who were being investigated for fraud and agreed to cooperate with authorities.

Assistant federal defender Timothy Zindel, who is representing Jackson, said his client had been a “loyal state worker” in Sacramento for more than 24 years.

He described her involvement in the FBI’s Medi-Cal probe as “a very minor part of their cases and their efforts.”

“She is a very, very religious person,” he said, “and if she made a mistake as they have alleged she has, then it is very out of character.”

Linhardt said the maximum penalty for a conviction on such charges is 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

Over the last year, the U.S. attorney’s office has filed criminal charges against more than 90 people as part of its probe of fraud in the $18-billion Medi-Cal program.

Nearly all the cases have been centered in Los Angeles, where medical equipment providers, pharmacies and blood laboratories have been accused of submitting hundreds of millions of dollars in false claims.

In most instances, they were accused of billing for supplies or services that were never provided. FBI officials have estimated that they expect to uncover more than $1 billion in fraudulent billings to the program by the time the investigation is completed.