Source: Office of United States Attorneys
Marc H. Silverman, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that JESSICA STUART, 42, last residing in Thomaston, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Sarala V. Nagala in Hartford to 10 months of imprisonment for violating the conditions of her supervised release that followed convictions and prison term for health care fraud and identity theft offenses.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Stuart does not have a college degree, was not a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) or licensed medical practitioner, and did not have any formal training in applied behavior analysis for Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Between approximately May 2019 and September 2020, Helping Hands Academy, LLC, a Bridgeport-based provider of applied behavior analysis services to children diagnosed with ASD, paid Stuart at least $146,0000 and submitted to Medicaid numerous fraudulent claims for applied behavioral analysis services that Stuart performed but was not qualified to provide. Stuart stole the professional identity of a legitimate BCBA so she could impersonate a BCBA and make a BCBA’s salary. Stuart caused Medicaid to pay out on over 1,900 fraudulent claims related to 12 children with ASD. Medicaid suffered a loss of approximately $369,439 as a result of Stuart’s conduct.
Stuart pleaded guilty to one count of health care fraud and one count of using false identification in connection with health care fraud and, on October 15, 2021, was sentenced to 27 months of imprisonment and three years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay full restitution. She was released from federal prison in April 2023.
In January 2025, Stuart was arrested by Bristol Police for offenses related to her alleged misuse of a Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits card that belonged to a resident of the Bristol Adult Resource Center (BARC) where Stuart had been employed. BARC is an organization that provides services to individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities that require full-time care. The investigation further revealed that Stuart had submitted weekly certifications for, and subsequently received, state unemployment benefits for nearly a month after she began working at BARC in June 2024. Stuart also failed to timely notify the U.S. Probation Office of her contact with Bristol Police.
Stuart has been detained in federal custody since January 23, 2025.
The original investigation was conducted by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General (HHS-OIG) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney David T. Huang.