The Department of Justice (DOJ) announced on Monday it’s charging hundreds of individuals in the largest national healthcare fraud case in history.
The DOJ criminally charged 324 individuals, including 96 healthcare professionals, for their alleged activity in $14.6 billion in Medicare and Medicaid fraud as a part of its 2025 National Health Care Fraud Takedown, the agency announced during a press conference. The actual losses acquired by the program from defrauding is $2.9 billion, according to the DOJ Head of the Criminal Division Matthew R. Galeotti. The fraud occurred in 50 federal districts.
“This enforcement action involves a seizure of cash, as well as luxury vehicles and properties, returning real money to American taxpayers and to our government healthcare programs,” Galeotti said in the press conference.
The DOJ charged defendants in fraud concerning transnational criminal organizations, fraudulent wound care, and perception opioid trafficking among other claims, such as fraud against private insurance companies, according to the DOJ. Many perpetuators conned and took advantage of American’s Medicare and Medicaid numbers that were obtained through deceptive marketing practices and theft.
Foreign actors allegedly organized a portion of the fraud, using a network of straw owners, many of whom are foreign-born and were allegedly sent to the U.S. with the purpose of defrauding Medicare.
“As part of this takedown, we’ve identified and charged defendants operating from Russia, Eastern Europe, Pakistan and other foreign countries,” Galeotti said. “As just one example, we dismantled a scheme involving a sophisticated operation run from Russia and Eastern Europe that strategically bought dozens of medical supply companies in the United States and submitted more than $10 billion in fraudulent health care claims to Medicare.”
The announcement follows the Trump Administration’s focus on halting federal fraud and waste, such as the alleged defrauding millions of dollars from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) last month and overwhelming Social Security fraud.
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