(File Photo)

Story by Sandy Giordano, Beaver County Radio News
(South Beaver Twp., Beaver County, Pa.) South Beaver Twp. Police reported that an unidentified driver was driving  a one ton dump pickup truck  on Darlington Road  at 12:30 p.m. Thursday, September 29, 2022,  and approached a  private road with a bridge on it. The bridge collapsed under the vehicle, damaging it. Officers reported that the driver was  not injured and the truck was damaged in the accident.

(Beaver Falls, Pa.) Tune into Beaver County Radio Friday morning September 30, 2022 from 9AM to Noon as Mike Romigh will be filling in for Eddy Crow on Teleforum.

Mike has line-up of guest that is sure to entertain the Beaver County Radio listeners.  The show will get underway with open talk from 9:10 AM to 10:00 AM. At 10:10 AM Mike will be joined by Kolt Codner from CCBC to talk about the “Build Back Better” plan and the funding that CCBC received from the program. Then at 11:10 AM Mike will be joined by Norm Mitry, President and CEO of Heritage Valley Valley Health System. The pair will talk about the new variant of booster shot for COVID-19 and finally at 11:35 AM Mike will be joined by Melvin Steals Sr.. Melvin and his brother wrote many Top 40 songs for Motown. They also wrote songs for Beaver County’s own Jaggerz including  “Gotta Find My Way Back to You”.

If you can’t tune into the show on 95.7 FM, 99.3 FM, 1230 WBVP, or 1460 WMBA you can listen on line at beavercountyradio.com

You can also download our free Apps from the Apple I-tunes store or Google Play Store.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., speaks to reporters as the Senate works to pass a stopgap spending bill that would fund the federal government into mid-December, at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, Sept. 28, 2022. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
By KEVIN FREKING Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — Congress is moving quickly to avoid a government shutdown. The Senate on Thursday passed a short-term spending bill that would finance federal agencies into mid-December. The legislation also provides another round of military and economic aid to Ukraine as it seeks to repel Russia’s invasion. The bill finances the federal government through Dec. 16, giving lawmakers time to agree on a larger government funding package after the midterm election. Assistance and money to help low-income families afford their heating bills this winter was also included in the bill, which now heads to the House for consideration.

President Joe Biden speaks during the White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health, at the Ronald Reagan Building, Wednesday, Sept. 28, 2022, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
By SEUNG MIN KIM Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — Six Republican-led states are suing the Biden administration to try and halt its plan to forgive student loan debt for millions of Americans. They’re accusing it of overstepping its executive powers. It’s at least the second legal challenge this week to the sweeping proposal laid out by President Joe Biden in late August, when he said his administration would cancel up to $20,000 in education debt for millions of borrowers. The announcement became immediate political fodder ahead of the November midterms while fueling arguments from conservatives about the program’s legality.

(Photo courtesy of Pa Crime Stoppers)

(Cranberry Twp., Butler County, Pa.) The Cranberry Township Police Department is asking anyone with information on the whereabouts of KHALID JOHNSON to please anonymously contact the Pennsylvania Crime Stoppers Toll Free at 1-800-4PA-TIPS (8477) or online at https://www.p3tips.com/tipform.aspx?ID=107 All callers to Pennsylvania Crime Stoppers remain anonymous and could be eligible for a CASH REWARD for information that leads to an arrest, the solving of a crime/cold case or the location of a wanted person/fugitive or missing person. All information is accurate as of Release Date and is subject to change or updated.

He is being charged with F3 Retail Theft Destroy Etc., Inventory Control Tag F3 Receiving Stolen Property, M1 Retail Theft Destroy, M1 Receiving Stolen Property, M1 Possessing an Instrument Of Crime W/Intent

Sourced via CRIMEWATCH®: https://www.crimewatchpa.com/crimestoppers/316/warrants/johnson-khalid-f3-retail-theft-destroy-and-5-additional-charges

(Matt Drzik/Beaver County Radio)

Despite the cooler temperatures, the focus for the Beaver County Commissioners at Wednesday’s work session steered towards things happening outside.

Public Works director Dan Colville requested that the Commissioners approve the demolition of three outhouse areas at Brush Creek Park: “We’ve had to go out there in the past and demolish some of the old outhouses out there. We have three more out there that are leaking, and it’s costing us money to have to pump those out; otherwise, they’re going to overflow.”

Colville also discussed the installation of units by Constellation Energy on the roof of the County Courthouse is set to begin on Thursday, October 6 and will require a shutdown of Market Street in Beaver for a large crane to haul the units to the rooftop. According to Colville, the agreement had already been reached by Beaver Borough and Constellation. “They’re anticipating being done Saturday and moving the equipment out on Sunday, business as usual on Monday,” Colville added.

That same weekend, the division of Parks and Recreation is looking to hold a Grand Opening for the newly remodeled outdoor courts at Brady’s Run Park. Director Tony Caltury spoke about such possibilities at the work session: “I can look at our schedule; we have some high school tennis matches that perhaps they’d be interested in hosting on the new courts.” Caltury set a tentative date for October 8, but that date was not finalized at the work session.

The next Commissioners’ work session is scheduled for October 5 at 10:00 AM.

(File Photo)

Story by Sandy Giordano, Beaver County Radio News
(Hopewell Twp., Beaver County, Pa.) The Hopewell Area School board met this week and agreed to the hiring of physician  Dr. G.R. Moka as the district’s physician. Dr. Moka will charge the school District $10.00 for  each exam. Also approved was that Optometric Care will  conduct eye exams  at a cost of $3.40 per exam, and Dr. Richard Covatto will provide dental exams at a cost of $5 per exam.

(File Photo)

Story by Sandy Giordano, Beaver County Radio News
(Hopewell Twp., Beaver County , Pa.) The Hopewell School Board met this week and Acting Superintendent Dr. Robert Kartychak  applauded retired teacher Rod Milanovich  who served the district for 35 years. Milanovich also sponsored  the high school’s Stock market Club.  Nick DeSalle was named to replace him.

PITTSBURGH, Pa. – Three residents of the Pittsburgh area were sentenced in federal court for conspiracy to defraud the Pennsylvania Medicaid program and related offenses, United States Attorney Cindy K. Chung announced today.
United States District Judge Cathy Bissoon sentenced Arlinda Moriarty, 53, of Cranberry, to 84 months’ imprisonment; her sister, Daynelle Dickens, of Pittsburgh, 48, to 24 months’ imprisonment; and their uncle, Tony Brown, 65, to 36 months of probation, including 3 months of home confinement. Moriarty, Dickens, and Brown were also ordered to pay restitution to the Pennsylvania Medicaid program totaling $8,700,000, $1,000,000, and $43,113.02, respectively. All three defendants previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit health care fraud and health care fraud. Moriarty pleaded guilty to additional counts of engaging in a scheme to conceal material facts in a health care matter and aggravated identity theft.
A total of 16 defendants were charged in connection with the health care fraud conspiracy and scheme, and 15 have now been convicted. The remaining defendant died during the pendency of the case.

“During this elaborate, years-long scheme, Arlinda Moriarty, her sister, and 13 of their co- conspirators stole millions of dollars from a critical government health care program by billing for in-home services that were never rendered,” said U.S. Attorney Chung. “I commend our law enforcement partners for their extraordinary efforts to investigate this massive health care fraud scheme, as well as the prosecutors who held the perpetrators accountable.”
“Ms. Moriarty sought to profit by defrauding the Medicaid program,” said FBI Pittsburgh Special Agent in Charge Mike Nordwall. “She undermined the integrity of federal health care programs and patient trust. Now, she faces the consequences of her actions. Today’s sentencing is a strong reminder that anyone who commits fraud will be held accountable. The FBI will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to expose fraud and protect the public from illegal schemes.”
“When someone commits Medicaid fraud they are stealing from hard working
Pennsylvanians,” said Attorney General Josh Shapiro. “These defendants made millions of dollars by defrauding Pennsylvanians and will now face the consequences for their actions. I am grateful for the work that my office, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and the United States Postal Inspection Service have done to bring justice in this case.”
“Defrauding federal and state health care programs wastes valuable taxpayer dollars and takes resources away from vulnerable populations in need of care and assistance,” said Maureen R. Dixon, Special Agent in Charge with the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG). “HHS-OIG is proud to work with our law enforcement partners to hold accountable perpetrators of health care fraud.”
“Postal Inspectors value the partnerships with other federal and state agencies that helped identify and dismantle an intricate false billing scheme,” said Inspector In Charge Lesley Allison for the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. “Arlinda Moriarty and her co-conspirators took advantage of the Medicaid waiver program that was devised to allow qualified individuals to receive assistance in their own homes. Today’s sentencing confirms that anyone who uses the U.S. Mail for criminal activity will be brought to justice and held accountable.”
According to admissions made in connection with the defendants’ guilty pleas, between January 2011 and April 2017, Moriarty, Dickens, and Brown were associated with four related entities controlled by Moriarty—Moriarty Consultants, Inc. (MCI), Activity Daily Living Services, Inc. (ADL), Everyday People Staffing, Inc. (EPS), and Coordination Care, Inc. (CCI). Dickens owned CCI, and Brown was an employee of MCI. MCI, ADL, and CCI were approved under the Pennsylvania Medicaid program to offer certain services to qualifying Medicaid recipients (“consumers”), including personal assistance services (PAS), service coordination, and non-medical transportation, among other services. EPS nominally performed back-office functions for MCI,
ADL, and CCI.
Between January 2011 and April 2017, MCI, ADL, and CCI, collectively, received more than $87,000,000 in Medicaid payments based on claims submitted for home health services, with PAS payments accounting for more than $80,000,000 of the total amount. During that time, Moriarty admitted orchestrating a wide-ranging conspiracy to defraud Medicaid for the purpose of obtaining millions of dollars in illegal Medicaid payments through the submission of fraudulent claims for services that were never provided to the consumers identified on the claims, or for which there was insufficient or fabricated documentation to support the claims.
The defendants admitted that the conspiracy and fraud scheme were carried out in a variety of ways. For example, co-conspirators fabricated timesheets to reflect the provision of in-home PAS care that, in fact, they never provided to the consumers identified on timesheets. Members of the conspiracy also paid kickbacks to consumers in exchange for their participation in the scheme.
Indeed, Brown admitted paying kickbacks to his then-son-in-law in connection with the submission of fraudulent Medicaid claims stating that Brown had provided in-home care for the son-in-law, when, in fact, he had not. Brown, the son-in-law, and Brown’s daughter, Tamika Adams, who previously was sentenced to 65 months’ incarceration, would then split the fraud proceeds. As part of the conspiracy, co-conspirators also caused the submission of Medicaid claims in the name of “ghost” employees for PAS care that never occurred.
During the conspiracy, Moriarty and Dickens also admitted causing the periodic bulk
submission of fraudulent Medicaid claims for so-called “unused” hours—i.e., excess hours of care that consumers had not needed and therefore should not have been billed. Finally, Moriarty admitted that during the course of audits of MCI, ADL, and CCI, she directed the fabrication of various documents for submission to state authorities in an effort to conceal the Medicaid fraud scheme.
Among other things, co-conspirators fabricated PAS timesheets, criminal history checks for attendants, child-abuse clearance forms for attendants, and certain consumer affidavits to ensure that files requested as part of the audits appeared complete. During the conspiracy, Moriarty and Dickens received payments from the Moriarty-related companies totaling approximately $1.6 million and
$1 million, respectively.
Assistant United States Attorney Eric G. Olshan and Special Assistant United States Attorney Edward Song are prosecuting this case on behalf of the government. The Federal Bureau of Investigation, Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General – Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services – Office of Inspector General, and United States Postal Inspection Service conducted the investigation of the defendants, with assistance from the Pennsylvania Bureau of Financial Operations.