WICHITA, Kan. (AP) Attorney General Derek Schmidt says he will ask Kansas legislators to strengthen the state’s penalties for Medicaid fraud.
The Republican attorney general outlined his proposal Thursday during a stop in Wichita.
Schmidt’s office is the state’s lead agency against fraud in Medicaid, which helps pay for health care for the poor, elderly and disabled. He said his office gained 15 criminal convictions and recovered $33.7 million in the latest fiscal year from people guilty of defrauding the program.
Schmidt is proposing higher fines for the crime. He also wants people convicted of Medicaid fraud to serve prison time instead of the current sentence of probation.
The 2014 legislative session begins Monday.
