Oakland County Woman Sentenced to Prison for Posing as Health Professional, Witness Intimidation

LANSING – Today, Kimberly Casey Coden, 38, of Huntington Woods, was sentenced by Judge L. Suzanne Geddis in the 44th Circuit Court in Livingston County for multiple felonies related to impersonating a health care professional and witness intimidation, announced Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel. Coden, who pled guilty in August, was sentenced to: 

• 4-6 years’ incarceration for six counts of Unauthorized Practice of a Health Profession;
• 4-7.5 years’ incarceration for two counts of Identity Theft; and
• 4-6 years’ incarceration for one count of Bribing, Intimidating a Witness.

Coden was employed as a director of services at Oxford Recovery Center, a facility with locations in Brighton and Troy, which provides services to children diagnosed with Autism. She presented herself as a Board-Certified Behavioral Analyst (BCBA) when she was not licensed by the State of Michigan and did not possess the requisite educational background. Coden also utilized the certification number of a properly board-certified BCBA to obtain employment at Centria Health Care for several months in 2016 and the Positive Behavior Supports Corporation from 2017 to 2018, in addition to the Oxford Recovery Center, where she was employed from 2018 to 2021. Coden also intimidated a witness to this matter via text messages in an effort to prevent the witness from testifying against her. 

“Falsifying credentials to gain access to a highly vulnerable population is unethical and reprehensible,” said Nessel. “I hope this sentence serves as a warning for others that we take the proper training, qualifications, and licensing requirements very seriously and there are real consequences for those who deliberately shirk them.” 

The Attorney General’s Health Care Fraud Division (HCFD) handled this case for the Department.  The HCFD is the federally certified Medicaid Fraud Control Unit for Michigan and it receives 75% of its funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under a grant award totaling $5,703,460.00 for the fiscal year 2025. The remaining 25% percent, totaling $1,901,152.00, is funded by the State of Michigan.

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