Steven Yohay Agreed to Be Excluded for 15 Years for Inducing Medicaid Beneficiaries for Enrolling Medicaid Patients in Substance Abuse Treatment Through Kickbacks

On December 17, 2020, in connection with the resolution of his False Claims Act liability, Steven Yohay, Oak Beach, New York, agreed to be excluded under 42 U.S.C. 1320a-7(b)(7) for 15 years. The investigation revealed and OIG alleged that Yohay, as the majority owner, President, and former CEO of A.R.E.B.A.-CASRIEL, Inc. d/b/a Addiction Care Interventions Chemical Dependency Treatment Centers (ACI), engaged in an illegal kickback scheme involving the use of employed drivers to solicit and recruit Medicaid beneficiaries for admission to ACI’s treatment programs, which resulted in false claims for payment to Medicaid. OIG further alleged that Yohay employed and paid an individual—purportedly for translation services—in order to induce that individual to refer patients to ACI, which resulted in false claims for payment to Medicaid. OIG also alleged that Yohay knew ACI admitted Medicaid patients into its inpatient treatment program who were not evaluated by a qualified health care professional as required by applicable state law and fabricated documentation with false signatures, but failed to return funds obtained using the false documentation to Medicaid. Senior Counsel Andrea Treese Berlin and David Fuchs represented OIG.

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