President Donald Trump’s Department of Justice conducted the largest health care fraud takedown in the agency’s history, involving $14.6 billion in intended losses.
The DOJ announced on Monday that it has filed criminal charges against 324 individuals — including 96 doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and other medical professionals — for their alleged participation in the scams.
‘These criminals didn’t just steal someone else’s money; they stole from you.’
Despite the billions of dollars in intended losses, the federal government seized $245 million in cash, cryptocurrency, luxury vehicles, and other assets.
Additionally, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services prevented more than $4 billion in fraudulent claims and revoked billing privileges for 205 providers.
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Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images
“Civil charges against 20 defendants for $14.2 million in alleged fraud, as well as civil settlements with 106 defendants totaling $34.3 million, were also announced as part of the Takedown,” the DOJ reported.
The massive schemes allegedly involved transnational criminal organizations, fraudulent wound care, prescription opioid trafficking, and telemedicine and genetic testing fraud.
According to the agency, 29 individuals faced charges for their alleged participation in transnational criminal organizations that submitted over $12 billion in fraudulent claims to American health insurance programs.
Another five defendants were charged in connection with a $703 million Medicare scheme that used theft and deceptive marketing to obtain beneficiaries’ identification numbers and other personal information.
“The defendants allegedly used artificial intelligence to create fake recordings of Medicare beneficiaries purportedly consenting to receive certain products. According to court documents, the beneficiaries’ confidential information was then illegally sold to laboratories and durable medical equipment companies, which used this unlawfully obtained and fraudulently generated data to submit false claims to Medicare,” the DOJ reported.
Forty-nine defendants faced charges for their alleged participation in a telemedicine and genetic testing scheme that involved $1.17 billion in fraudulent claims to Medicare.
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Matthew Galeotti, the head of the DOJ’s Criminal Division. Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images
Attorney General Pam Bondi described the takedown as “record-setting.”
“Make no mistake — this administration will not tolerate criminals who line their pockets with taxpayer dollars while endangering the health and safety of our communities,” Bondi declared.
Matthew Galeotti, the head of the DOJ’s Criminal Division, stated during a Monday press conference, “In a takedown this large, I can’t possibly describe all of the work that went into dismantling each scheme.”
“These criminals didn’t just steal someone else’s money; they stole from you. Every fraudulent claim, every fake billing, every kickback scheme represents money taken directly from the pockets of American taxpayers who fund these essential programs through their hard work and sacrifice,” Galeotti continued. “When criminals defraud these programs, they’re not just committing theft; they’re driving up our national deficit and threatening the long-term viability of health care for seniors, disabled Americans, and our most vulnerable citizens.”
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