Kenneth Terrell Harrison, a 45-year-old resident of College Park, Georgia, has been sentenced to 52 months in prison and three years of supervised release after pleading guilty to fraud involving the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System (AHCCCS). United States District Judge Michael T. Liburdi also ordered Harrison to pay $6,538,485.09 in restitution to AHCCCS.
Harrison owned Aurtism, LLC, an outpatient behavioral health counseling service based in Mesa. In 2019, Aurtism applied to become a medical provider for AHCCCS, Arizona’s Medicaid agency. During the application process, Harrison did not disclose his ownership interest because he was concerned that revealing his role as primary owner would result in denial due to his prior criminal record.
According to admissions made by Harrison, beginning in January 2020 he obtained AHCCCS identification numbers for enrollees—some who had visited Aurtism and others whose information was acquired fraudulently. The majority of those billed were members of the American Indian Health Plan (AIHP). The business then submitted fraudulent claims for services never rendered between January 2020 and October 2021, totaling more than $6.5 million.
At sentencing, the court highlighted the significant impact this type of fraud has on vulnerable populations within Arizona.
The investigation was conducted by the FBI’s Phoenix Division and IRS Criminal Investigation’s Phoenix Field Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Aron Ketchel prosecuted the case.
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