Woman gets 4-year fed prison term for insurance embezzlement

CARSON CITY - A former claims manager who pleaded guilty to charges stemming from the embezzlement of $608,000 from a government workers' health insurance program has been sentenced to four years in federal prison.

Mary Ferris, who had pleaded guilty earlier to 10 counts of fraud and one count of embezzlement, was sentenced Friday in Las Vegas by U.S. District Judge Johnnie Rawlinson.

Under terms of the sentencing, $447,000 recovered from Ferris is being forfeited to the U.S. Attorney's Office. Nevada Attorney General Frankie Sue Del Papa will in turn petition for the return of the money to state coffers.

The state attorney general's office also is continuing legal efforts to get the remaining $131,000 embezzled by Ferris from the state Committee on Benefits.

Ferris worked for L&H Administrators, which had a contract with the committee to manage insurance claims for Nevada and Clark County health plans. But the company closed its Nevada offices, leaving the state with about 75,000 unprocessed medical claims.

The health care fraud counts charged that Ferris set up phony medical providers that were paid for services supposedly given to scores of employees.

Documents unsealed in U.S. District Court gave more details on Ferris, also known as Jane Treher, and her background.

The documents show Ferris has a lengthy history of arrests and at least two convictions. One of those was a misdemeanor conviction out of Santa Ana, Calif., in 1986 on a charge of preparing false documents for insurance claims. She received probation.

Between 1988 and 1992, three warrants were issued in Southern California for her arrest on grand theft charges. But, according to court documents, there was never any disposition of those cases.

In 1992, she was charged with felony grand theft property in Santa Ana and again received probation.

A lack of adequate internal controls at L&H provided the opportunity to take the money, according to Perry Comeaux, state budget chief and a member of the Committee on Benefits, which oversees the state health plan.

In addition to the charges against Ms. Ferris, the state filed a civil complaint against L&H owner Frank Rousseau and various L&H corporate entities, alleging negligence and breaches of contract and fiduciary duties.

UICI Administrators was hired to fix the mess left behind by L&H Administrators.

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