Bonnie Brae Youth Residential Psych Facility Must Repay Medicaid $1.5 Million

May 15, 2026

New Jersey officials say youth residential treatment provider Bonnie Brae must repay more than $1.5 million to Medicaid after an audit found serious problems with documentation and questions about whether required mental health services were actually provided to vulnerable youth in its care. The audit, released by the New Jersey Office of the State Comptroller, found records that were “unreliable” and, in some cases, implausible.

According to investigators, the facility documented overlapping therapy sessions, repeated nearly identical progress notes across multiple patients, and recorded services for youth or staff who were reportedly absent at the time. Auditors also found that two clinical coordinators were unlicensed and concluded the discrepancies were so extensive they would have required roughly 10 additional full-time staff members to account for the documented service hours. Medicaid paid Bonnie Brae more than $34 million during the audit period and over $91 million across five years.

State officials said the findings raise serious concerns about accountability and whether youth received the care taxpayers funded and children were entitled to receive. Bonnie Brae submitted a corrective action plan but did not address repayment of the identified overpayment, according to the comptroller’s office.

(Source: Daily Voice, May 14, 2026)