The Attorney General’s Office announced that Amy Trela, 48, of Winooski, Vermont, and Alicia Russell, 29, of Essex, Vermont, were arraigned today as co-defendants on one count each of felony Medicaid fraud. The charges are the result of an investigation by the Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud and Residential Abuse Unit (MFRAU), which found that the defendants falsely certified Medicaid timesheets, defrauding Vermont Medicaid of over $62,000 in public healthcare funds since 2019.
Ms. Trela and Ms. Russell both pleaded not guilty at their arraignment in Vermont Superior Court, Chittenden Unit, Criminal Division. Judge Michael J. Harris presided over the court proceedings and ordered conditions of release requiring the defendants to maintain contact with the court and counsel and attend all further proceedings.
"If you suspect someone of abusing the Vermont Medicaid program," stated a representative from the Attorney General’s Office, "please contact Vermont Adult Protective Services by calling 800-564-1612 and MFRAU at https://ago.vermont.gov/medicaid-fraud-report-form."
The Attorney General’s Office emphasized that individuals charged with a crime are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
MFRAU receives 75 percent of its funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under a grant totaling $1,229,616 for Federal fiscal year 2024. The remaining 25 percent, amounting to $409,870 for FFY 2024, is funded by the State of Vermont.