Twin sisters who used to live in Burlington will be arraigned Tuesday on charges of stealing more than $580,000 from state and federal agencies in an alleged scheme that involved identity fraud and conducting unlicensed psychological exams, prosecutors said.
The sisters, Nita Guzman and Nina Tischer, both 49, provided mental health services between 2008 and 2012 through two companies that they ran, but the siblings were not licensed psychologists, Attorney General Martha Coakley’s office said.
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It was not clear Monday who is representing the women. They have been held in Minnesota for nearly two weeks pending their return to Massachusetts.
Officials began investigating Guzman after a licensed psychologist told Coakley’s office that Guzman’s company, New England Psychological Consultants Inc., had used the psychologist’s name and license number without her permission for billing, the statement said.
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Tischer ran the company PsychSupport Inc. and allegedly used the identifying information of a psychologist, a mental health counselor, and a social worker to bill the University of Massachusetts Medical School more than $30,000 for disability evaluations of people seeking state and federal benefits....
In addition, Guzman allegedly billed Lawrence public schools more than $60,000 for psychological evaluations of special-needs students that she and her sister conducted, even though they were not licensed to do the work.
Is that why they are in receivership?
The sisters are facing several charges, including Medicaid false claims, false claims to a public agency, larceny, identity fraud, and the unlicensed practice of psychology. They will be arraigned in Middlesex Superior Court in Woburn.
Tischer’s company was dissolved in 2012, and Guzman’s outfit folded in June, according to a state corporate database. The women were indicted in August....
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