A behavioral health clinician from Middletown was arrested Tuesday and charged with submitting false claims to Medicaid, officials said.

Darlene (Dailey) Shuff-Porter, 64, was taken into custody by inspectors from the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit in the Office of the Chief State’s Attorney and charged with one count of health insurance fraud and one count of first-degree larceny by defrauding a public community, according to a release from the Connecticut Division of Criminal Justice. The charges are punishable by up to 20 years in prison.

Between December 2018 and April 2020, Shuff-Porter, a licensed behavioral health clinician and owner of Dailey Professional Counseling Services, LLC, in Meriden, allegedly billed for psychotherapy services that were not rendered amounting to $55,410.69 in payments, according to the arrest warrant affidavit.

“Evidence acquired through an investigation showed that Dailey Professional Counseling Services, LLC was not meeting with clients as reported,” the release from DCJ said. “However, she was submitting claims to the state Department of Social Services for payment.”

According to the affidavit, Shuff-Porter was using unlicensed employees to meet with clients, then billing Medicaid as if licensed-qualified services were provided.

Shuff-Porter was released on a $50,000 non-surety bond. She is scheduled to appear in Hartford Superior Court on Dec. 7.

Anyone with knowledge of suspected fraud or abuse in the public healthcare system is asked to contact the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit at the Office of the Chief State’s Attorney at 860-258-5986.