West Virginia Code 9-8-8 – Referrals for fraud, misrepresentation or inadequate documentation
(a) After the case review as set forth in § 9-8-6 of this code, the department shall refer cases of suspected fraud to the Office of Inspector General within the department. That office shall take appropriate action, including civil penalties or referral to an appropriate prosecuting attorney for criminal prosecution.
Terms Used In West Virginia Code 9-8-8
- Assistance: means the three classes of assistance, namely: Federal-state assistance, federal assistance and state assistance. See West Virginia Code 9-1-2
- Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
- Department: means the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources. See West Virginia Code 9-8-1
- Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
- Garnishment: Generally, garnishment is a court proceeding in which a creditor asks a court to order a third party who owes money to the debtor or otherwise holds assets belonging to the debtor to turn over to the creditor any of the debtor
- Public assistance: means government benefits provided to qualifying individuals on the basis of need to provide basic necessities to individuals and their families. See West Virginia Code 9-8-1
- State: when applied to a part of the United States and not restricted by the context, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories, and the words "United States" also include the said district and territories. See West Virginia Code 2-2-10
(b) In cases of substantiated fraud, upon conviction, the state shall review all appropriate legal options. These may include, but are not limited to, removal from other public assistance programs and garnishment of wages or state income tax refunds until the department recovers an equal amount of benefits fraudulently claimed.
(c) The department may refer suspected cases of fraud, misrepresentation, or inadequate documentation to appropriate agencies, divisions, or departments for review of eligibility issues in other public assistance programs. This should also include cases in which an individual is determined to be no longer eligible for the original program.