JUST IN: State accuses mental-health counselor of insurance fraud

June 23--WEST PALM BEACH -- A West Palm Beach counselor and life coach is accused of charging a patient for sessions that never happened, authorities disclosed Friday.

Michelle Foraker of Mind Renewal Counseling and Coaching charged one of her patients for 17 visits when she only attended seven, the Florida Division of Insurance Fraud said in the probable-cause affidavit for Foraker's arrest.

A separate investigation by the health-insurer Cigna came to the same conclusion, and Foraker was expelled from its network on April 28 after declining to provide medical records of the visits in question, according to the affidavit.

When contacted by state officials, Foraker refused to speak about the claims and said a criminal attorney would contact the authorities on her behalf, the report said. Attempts to reach her or her attorney for comment Friday were unsuccessful.

Foraker was arrested Thursday morning on nine counts of insurance fraud and was released from the Palm Beach County Jail that night after posting $27,000 bail.

The patient spoke with authorities about the extra charges June 7, according to the affidavit. She provided documentation from her credit card statements on the days that she attended meetings, and she was charged a $15 co-pay. She said she never paid in cash and always paid by card at the beginning of each meetings.

On the days she was billed for sessions she didn't attend, she was never charged a co-pay, the affidavit said. On two occasions she was billed, she was staying with her parents out of town.

The woman also showed the officer her FitBit activity, a worn device that tracks someone's movements, where on the days of the legitimate sessions, she had almost no activity, the report said. On the days of the false sessions, the FitBit showed a lot of activity.

Foraker's license to counsel patients remains active, but the state will monitor the progress of the case, said Brad Dalton, Florida Department of Health spokesman. An arrest is not evidence of wrongdoing, Dalton said. Only a conviction or a plea is actionable.

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