Armand Ntchana, an Advanced Practice Registered Nurse licensed in Connecticut and the owner of several healthcare entities, has agreed to pay over $600,000 to settle allegations that he and his businesses submitted false claims to Medicare and Connecticut Medicaid. The settlement was announced by David X. Sullivan, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut.
Ntchana’s companies include Integrated Procare Services, LLC (IPS), a psychiatric medication management practice based in Wethersfield; Brookside Residential Care Home, LLC and its associated property company in Danbury; and Riverview Residential Care Home, LLC with its related property entity in New Haven. Both Brookside and Riverview were state-funded residential care homes. Ntchana stopped managing these facilities in 2022 and 2023 respectively, selling their properties in August 2023.
Federal and state authorities allege that from January 2016 through October 2020, Ntchana and IPS violated federal and state False Claims Acts by billing for services not rendered, using unlicensed providers, and submitting upcoded or duplicate claims. According to the government’s findings, claims were submitted listing Ntchana as the provider when he did not perform the services. This included billing for implausible numbers of hours per day or during times when he was not present—including periods when he was out of the country or on vacation—as well as for patients who were hospitalized or deceased. In some cases, staff members called in medication refills without any direct interaction between Ntchana and the patient or medical record. Authorities also found instances where false medical records were created or missing altogether.
Further allegations state that unqualified individuals provided care while claims listed Ntchana as the rendering provider. Additionally, there were instances where both evaluation/management visits and psychotherapy sessions were billed for the same visit even though only one service had been performed.
To resolve these issues, Ntchana and his related entities will pay $614,427.51 plus interest—an amount determined by their ability to pay—and have entered into a Suspension Agreement with the Connecticut Department of Social Services (DSS). Under this agreement, they are suspended from participating in all DSS-administered programs for two years and cannot reapply for reinstatement into Connecticut Medicaid or other state-funded programs thereafter.
The investigation involved multiple agencies including the Office of Inspector General for Health and Human Services, Connecticut Attorney General’s Office, Drug Enforcement Administration’s New Haven Tactical Diversion Squad, and Connecticut Medicaid Fraud Control Unit. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Gruber alongside Assistant Attorney General Rick Porter from the Connecticut Office of the Attorney General.
Authorities noted that today’s settlement followed an investigation initiated after a detailed analysis of Medicare claims data. Individuals suspecting healthcare fraud are encouraged to report it via 1-800-HHS-TIPS.
