CAROLINE COUNTY, MD – Nicole Lynn Vanhorn, 38, of Denton, Maryland pleaded guilty to a single count of Medicaid fraud exceeding $1,500 on Jan. 22, 2025, before Anne Arundel County Circuit Court Judge Mark W. Crooks.
She was sentenced to five years, with the sentence suspended in favor of probation. The first three years of her probation will be supervised by the Department of Parole and Probation.
Judge Crooks also ordered that Vanhorn not practice nursing unless properly licensed and prohibited her from working with elderly or vulnerable adults or in any healthcare agency receiving state or federal funds.
The case against Vanhorn dates back to August 2023 when she began working at Denton Nursing and Rehab in Caroline County, Maryland, by falsely claiming to be a registered nurse. Vanhorn used the credentials of a licensed nurse from Pennsylvania with a similar name and misrepresented her education by claiming to have degrees from the University of Pennsylvania and Pennsylvania State University. Both institutions confirmed she had no record of enrollment.
From Aug. 11-29, 2023, Vanhorn worked as a registered nurse supervisor, administering medications, supervising medical assistants, and providing care to patients. Her actions led to Maryland Medicaid paying $3,576.20 for services she was unqualified to provide.
Attorney General Brown emphasized the importance of proper nursing licensure to ensure patient safety and warned against the dangers posed by individuals fraudulently posing as healthcare providers, especially when caring for vulnerable populations like the elderly and disabled.
Brown also thanked the Medicaid Fraud and Vulnerable Victims Unit, specifically Unit Chief Zak Shirley, Assistant Attorney General Kelly A. Casper, Investigators Mark Janowitz and Michael Regan, Senior Auditor Todd Sheffer, and their counterparts in the Delaware Medicaid Fraud Control Unit for their work on the case.