I want to share my story because these rules are not just words on paper. They affect real people, real caregivers, and real families.

I was a live-in caregiver for my grandmother. She received five hours of care per day. I lived with her, cared for her, and also worked another job.

One of the biggest problems I had was poor phone and internet connection. I did not always have reliable service when I needed to enter my time. Because of that, I would sometimes have to enter my hours later when I had access to the system.

The system allowed me to do that.

When I entered my time late, there was a drop-down box asking why I had not entered it at the actual time. I selected that I had no service or connection. I was not hiding anything. I was using the system the way it allowed me to use it and explaining why the entry was late.

The other problem was that I could not control the clock-in time once I entered the system. The system captured the time I logged in. I could adjust the clock-out time to reflect the five hours of care my grandmother was approved for, but I could not go back and change the clock-in time to the actual time I had provided the care.

Sometimes I entered those hours while I was at my other job because that was when I had service and access. That job also used electronic timekeeping.

On paper, that could make it look like I was clocked in for two people at the same time.

But that was not what was actually happening.

I had already provided my grandmother’s care. I was entering the time later because I did not have reliable service when the care was provided.

Someone reviewed those entries.

Someone saw the reason I selected.

Someone approved those hours.

And I was paid for the approved time.

Years later, those electronic overlaps became part of a Medicaid fraud case against me.

In 2026, I accepted a plea agreement. I could not afford approximately $10,000 more in attorney fees to take my case to trial. Today I have approximately $21,000 in restitution and I am labeled a felon.

That label has affected my ability to work and earn a living after spending decades caring for other people.

I am not sharing this because I believe Medicaid should not have safeguards. There should absolutely be safeguards against intentional fraud.

But there also need to be safeguards for caregivers when the technology does not tell the whole story.

A timestamp should not automatically equal intent.

A poor cellular connection should not automatically equal fraud.

A late entry that the system allowed, explained, reviewed, approved, and paid should not years later be looked at without also looking at the explanation that came with it.

Now Virginia is expanding EVV requirements to live-in caregivers, and I am asking DMAS to learn from situations like mine.

Caregivers need a clear and permanent record of why an entry was made late. When there is an overlap or discrepancy, the caregiver should be contacted immediately and given a chance to explain it. Poor cellular and internet service, especially in rural areas, must be taken seriously. And when an entry is reviewed and approved, there should be accountability for that approval too.

Please do not build a system where all of the responsibility falls on the caregiver while the system, the reviewer, and the approval process carry none.

I may never be vindicated on the record, but my work, my family, and my friends know who I am and the work I have done. I know the care I provided and the life I spent serving other people.

The consequences I have experienced are lifelong and catastrophic. They have affected my career, my livelihood, my reputation, and my future in ways I never imagined.

I do not believe I deserved to lose so much because of a system that failed to fully capture how and when care was actually provided.

I pray this never happens to another caregiver.

I cannot undo what happened to me, but I hope telling my story helps Virginia build a system that is fairer, safer, and more accountable for everyone.