Mississippi Medicaid Recipients Agree to Pay $315,380 to Resolve False Claims Act Allegations

Jackson, Miss. - U.S. Attorney Darren J. LaMarca announced today that Manjit Kaur (Kaur) and Gurmej Singh (Singh) have agreed to pay $315,380 to resolve allegations that they knowingly falsified their income to unlawfully create eligibility for Mississippi Medicaid health care benefits for their dependents. 

The Medicaid Program is a state and federally funded health benefit program intended to assist low-income individuals and families. The Mississippi Division of Medicaid (MDOM) is the single state agency responsible for administering these health care benefits for eligible Mississippians.  Eligible members do not directly receive money from Medicaid for health benefits.  Instead, enrolled and qualified Medicaid providers are reimbursed for health services. 

The United States contends that Kaur and Singh did not meet Medicaid’s low-income requirements and thus were not eligible to receive Medicaid reimbursed health benefits for their dependents.  According to the United States, husband and wife Kaur and Singh collectively owned and/or were associated with at least 15 convenience store/gas station/wine stores located in Mississippi.  Kaur and/or Singh intentionally omitted these multiple businesses from their health benefit applications.  Kaur and Singh also own an 8,804 square foot home located in Madison, Mississippi, most recently valued at 2.25 million dollars. 

Despite these assets, the United States alleges that Kaur and/or Singh represented on various Mississippi Medicaid health care benefit applications and renewals that Kaur was the sole source of income from one business receiving approximately $1,500 per month.  In addition, Kaur and/or Singh represented that Singh was not residing in the home or contributing to the household income.  As such, the United States alleges that from January 1, 2016, to December 22, 2022, Kaur and Singh caused the MDOM to pay $157,690 in federal health care coverage benefits on behalf of ineligible recipients.  

“The Medicaid Program is intended to provide access to quality health coverage for our most vulnerable populations in Mississippi,” said U.S. Attorney Darren LaMarca.  “Our office is committed to uncovering individual fraudsters and protecting the funding for eligible Mississippians and their families.” 

The FCA claims settled are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.  This case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector General, and supported by the MDOM and the Mississippi Attorney General’s Office, Medicaid Fraud Control Unit.