A Chanhassen psychologist has been sentenced to 24 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release for fraudulently billing for counseling services never actually rendered. According to court documents, Charles Howard Jorenby, 57, was a licensed psychologist and owner of Life Dynamics, Inc., a counseling center located in Prior Lake. From at least January 2013 through February 2020, Jorenby orchestrated a scheme to defraud the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community (SMSC), which is responsible for funding its own tribal members’ healthcare costs. In order to administer its own self-funded costs, SMSC contracted with Blue Cross Blue Shield Minnesota (BCBS) as its healthcare administrator and processor for provider billing.
Jorenby realized that, within the relationship between SMSC and BCBS, billed services were fully covered, and no individuals received any mailings or “explanation of benefits” paperwork, and that he could therefore submit fraudulent bills for counseling services he claimed to have provided to dozens of SMSC members without any notice to the individuals. In reality, Jorenby never provided counseling services to those individuals, and he used their names and dates of birth without their knowledge or permission. As a result of his false billing practices, SMSC suffered a loss of at least $819,020.83.
