(Sarah Roderick-Fitch, The Center Square) The U.S. Department of Justice announced Tuesday that 455 people have been indicted for alleged health care fraud, believed to cost taxpayers over $6.5 billion.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said the defendants spanned 45 states and territories.
“These individuals participated in health care fraud schemes involving over $6.5 billion in false claims submitted to Medicare, Medicaid and other health care programs,” Blanche said during a press conference.
The acting attorney general highlighted a corporate executive in Arizona accused of fraud involving over $1 billing “involving unnecessary wound grafts.” He added that the alleged “scheme” cost taxpayers over $1 million “per patient in total.”
“Our indictment charges 11 defendants for over $2 billion in fraud and fraudulent claims in connection to alleged would care schemes. The indictment also alleges that these individuals then used the taxpayer money to bankroll multi-million-dollar homes, luxury vehicles,” said Blanche.
In addition, the defendant has been accused of using the money to purchase expensive jewelry and funding the construction of a $4.6 million beach resort in the Philippines.
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., described how HHS is tracking down fraudsters.
“We are deploying advanced artificial intelligence and data analytics to identify fraudulent billing patterns in real time, stop improper payments before they occur, and strengthen oversight across federal health programs. Our objective is straightforward: stop the fraud before it happens,” said Kennedy.
FBI Director Kash Patel said that in the last two weeks alone, “perpetrators and criminals who have been arrested and apprehended from around the world, totaling over six and seven billion dollars in fraud in money stolen from the American people.”
The investigations stem from the White House Anti-Fraud Task Force, with support from the DOJ, FBI, HHS, the Office of Inspector General, and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
