Delaware psychiatrist Yvette K. Baker gets a year in prison for Medicaid fraud

October 24, 2012

DOVER - A former Dover area psychiatrist charged with defrauding the Delaware Medicaid Program of nearly $175,000 received a jail sentence Tuesday after pleading guilty to her crimes, Attorney General Joseph R. “Beau” Biden Jr. announced.

Yvette K. Baker, 53, was charged in July, 2011 by the Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit with multiple felony counts of healthcare fraud for the improper billing of the Medicaid Program and prescription drug diversion. The charges, which stem from an investigation initiated by the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit in 2010 after receiving a referral of billing improprieties from the State’s Division of Medicaid and Medical Assistance, cover Ms. Baker’s conduct at the Psychiatric Wellness Center in Dover from July, 2006 through July, 2009.

Following Ms. Baker’s guilty plea she was immediately sentenced by Judge William L. Witham, Jr. to one year in prison, followed by seven years of probation. Additionally, she was ordered to pay $273,000 in damages and fines, including $172,000 to the Delaware Medicaid Program, $100,000 in fines, and $1,750 for the cost of extradition.

Ms. Baker’s license to prescribe drugs was suspended in April, 2010, and her Delaware medical license was suspended in July, 2010.

Ms. Baker was arrested in October, 2011 in Huntsville, Ala. where she resided at the time and was extradited to Delaware in January, 2012. She has been held at the Delores J. Baylor Women’s Correctional Institution in New Castle since her return to Delaware.

“The abuse of prescription drugs is a growing epidemic threatening public health and safety and devastating our families,” AG Biden said. “Prescription abuse in the Medicaid program also increases costs for all who rely on it for their healthcare needs.

“With this case we’re sending a clear message that we’re committed to going after those who improperly prescribe addictive drugs and that we’re committed to cutting waste and fraud to protect this valuable program for all Delawareans.”

Source: "Former Dover psychiatrist jailed after Medicaid fraud sentence," Delaware State News, October 23, 2012.