ST. LOUIS - The owner of a home healthcare company on Tuesday admitted defrauding the Missouri Medicaid Program and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs out of more than $209,000.

Natavia Boyd-Wells, 41, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in St. Louis to one count of wire fraud. She admitted that while owner of Touch of the Heart Home Health Care LLC, she submitted hundreds of fraudulent reimbursement claims to the Missouri Medicaid Program and the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Community Care Network. Missouri Medicaid and the VA fund home healthcare services to enable patients to remain in their homes instead of long-term inpatient stays in hospitals and nursing homes.

Boyd-Wells admitted submitting claims for services on dates when the veteran patients were in the hospital and could not possibly have received home healthcare services. She also submitted claims knowing both that the services were not provided and that she did not have any necessary documentation of the services.

In February of 2022, Missouri Medicaid officials conducting an audit requested documentation reflecting services that Boyd-Wells claimed were provided to a Medicaid patient. No documentation existed. Boyd-Wells on Tuesday admitted submitting and causing to be submitted fraudulent documentation to Medicaid in response to their request.

From about June 2020 through November 2024, Boyd-Well's fraud cost Missouri Medicaid at least $109,751 and the VA at least $100,563.

The Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of Inspector General and the Missouri Attorney General's Medicaid Fraud Control Unit investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Derek Wiseman is prosecuting the case.