GRAND RAPIDS, MI (WKZO AM/FM) – A Wayland area woman who faked being a licensed nurse has pleaded guilty to using the identity of another person to obtain employment as a licensed registered nurse and to making false statements relating to health care matters.
U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Michigan Mark Totten said by impersonating a nurse and creating false medical records, 49-year-old Leticia Gallarzo risked patient care and put unsuspecting individuals in harm’s way.
Gallarzo pleaded guilty to two federal crimes: making a false statement in a medical record affecting a health care benefit program and aggravated identity theft. The health care fraud charge is punishable by up to five years in prison.
The aggravated identity theft charge carries a mandatory two years in prison, which would be served after any prison sentence imposed for the health care fraud charge. No sentencing date has been set.
According to court documents, Gallarzo falsely represented that she was a licensed registered nurse and had completed a Bachelor of Science degree in nursing from Davenport University when applying for a job at a local nursing facility. Totten says when transmitting her application to the prospective employer over the internet through Indeed.com, Gallarzo used the means of identification of someone that she knew to be an actual licensed registered nurse in the state of Michigan.
Court officials say after obtaining employment as a nurse, Gallarzo evaluated and assessed elderly nursing home patients and falsely signed electronic medical records as a licensed registered nurse. These false statements were related to Medicare, a health care benefit program, because the nursing home relied on Gallarzo’s status as a licensed registered nurse to meet certain Medicare regulations for participation in and billing of Medicare.
