Nurse Faces 10 Years in Prison for Scam Involving Deceased Patient

By John Commins

A Missouri nurse faces 10 years in prison after admitting that she falsely claimed to provide Medicaid services to a developmentally disabled man who was found dead and encased in concrete.

Melissa Denise DeLap, 49, a community registered nurse in Columbia, waived her right to a grand jury and pleaded guilty in federal court this week to one count of healthcare fraud, prosecutors said.

DeLap was paid $38 a visit to provide face-to-face evaluations and medical services to Carl DeBrodie, a Medicaid beneficiary in a supported living program operated by Second Chance Homes in Fulton.

Prosecutors said DeBrodie is believed to have died in early September 2016 while under the care of Second Chance Homes, but his disappearance was not reported until April 17, 2017, and his body was found encased in concrete in a storage unit on April 24, 2017.

In that six-months span, DeLap falsified DeBrodie’s monthly health summaries for every month in that period, falsely claiming that she had performed a face-to-face assessment of DeBrodie and provided the other services she was required to do as a CRN.

Along with the potential prison time, DeLap must pay $106,795 to Medicaid, surrender her nursing license within six months, and never become licensed again to practice as a nurse in the United States and its territories.