Griffin: ‘My office investigated and prosecuted 13 cases that led to convictions …, outranking much larger states like California and New York’

LITTLE ROCK – Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin released the following statement highlighting the work done by his office’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit (MFCU) that resulted in a No. 4 ranking for abuse and neglect convictions, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Inspector General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Units Fiscal Year 2023 Annual Report:

“This recently published report shows that Arkansas ranked fourth in the country in total convictions for abuse and neglect, which are crimes perpetrated most often against elderly and disabled victims. My office investigated and prosecuted 13 cases that led to convictions in Federal Fiscal Year 2023, outranking much larger states like California and New York, both of which have more than 10 times the number of staff as Arkansas.

“I am supremely proud of my office’s MFCU team and their commitment to protecting our vulnerable population in Arkansas. All 13 cases that resulted in convictions were prosecuted by either Senior Assistant Attorney General Sharon Strong or Assistant Attorney General Gabby Davis-Jones. This ranking shows that my office is maximizing its resources on behalf of Arkansas taxpayers.”

The report covers Federal Fiscal Year 2023, which ran from October 2022 through September 2023. The unit is tasked to fight Medicaid fraud by investigating and prosecuting violations of state and federal laws involving Medicaid providers and the abuse or neglect of long-term care facility residents.

If an Arkansan suspects Medicaid fraud or the abuse and neglect of a long-term care facility resident, they can file a complaint by visiting https://arkansasag.gov/resources/contact-us/medicaid-fraud-reporting/ or by calling (800) 482-8982. All complaints are confidential.

To read the full HHS report, click here.

For a printer-friendly version of this release, click here.

About Attorney General Tim Griffin

Tim Griffin was sworn in as the 57th Attorney General of Arkansas on January 10, 2023, having previously served as the state’s 20th Lieutenant Governor from 2015-2023. From 2011-2015, Griffin served as the 24th representative of Arkansas’s Second Congressional District, where he served on the House Committee on Ways and Means, House Armed Services Committee, House Committee on Foreign Affairs, House Committee on Ethics and House Committee on the Judiciary while also serving as a Deputy Whip for the Majority.

Griffin has served as an officer in the U.S. Army Reserve Judge Advocate General’s (JAG) Corps for more than 27 years and currently holds the rank of colonel. In 2005, Griffin was mobilized to active duty as an Army prosecutor at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, and served with the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) in Mosul, Iraq.

He is currently serving as the Commander of the 2d Legal Operations Detachment in New Orleans, Louisiana. His previous assignments include serving as the Commander of the 134th Legal Operations Detachment at Fort Liberty (née Bragg), North Carolina, and as a Senior Legislative Advisor to the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness at the Pentagon. Griffin earned a master’s degree in strategic studies as a Distinguished Honor Graduate from the U.S. Army War College, Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania.

Griffin also served as U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas, and Special Assistant to the President and Deputy Director of Political Affairs for President George W. Bush; Special Assistant to Assistant Attorney General Michael Chertoff, Criminal Division, U.S. Department of Justice; Special Assistant U.S. Attorney, U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of Arkansas; Senior Investigative Counsel, Government Reform and Oversight Committee, U.S. House of Representatives; and Associate Independent Counsel, Office of Independent Counsel David M. Barrett, In re: HUD Secretary Henry Cisneros.

Griffin is a graduate of Magnolia High School, Hendrix College in Conway, and Tulane Law School in New Orleans. He attended graduate school at Oxford University. He is admitted to practice law in Arkansas (active) and Louisiana (inactive). Griffin lives in Little Rock with his wife, Elizabeth, a Camden native, and their three children.

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