In October 2014, three women from the Tallahassee area were arrested on suspicion of Medicaid fraud, claiming tens of thousands of dollars in benefits for services that were never rendered.
According to an investigation by Attorney General Pam Bondi’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit (MFCU), two Tallahassee women (Melissa L. Simmons, 39, and Felicia S. Simmons, 37, allegedly colluded with home health care provider Willie-Mae Williams, 64, to bill Medicaid for services to a developmentally disabled child that were never actually provided. The total of the alleged false claims is over $13,000.
Simmons and Simmons have each been officially charged with conspiracy to 
commit Medicaid fraud. If convicted, each of them faces up to five years in prison and a fine of $70,000, plus restitution. Williams is charged with Medicaid fraud and conspiracy to commit Medicaid fraud; a conviction on both counts could earn her up to 20 years’ imprisonment and an $80,000 fine, plus restitution.
The MFCU is tasked with investigating wrongdoing allegations among agencies that receive funds from Medicaid, ranging from intentionally defrauding the state Medicaid program to cases of abuse and neglect. The agency has won more than $400 million in settlements and judgments in Medicaid related cases over the past several years.
The case involving Simmons, Simmons and Williams will be prosecuted by the 2nd Circuit State Attorney’s Office.