title: National Health Care Fraud Takedown Results in 455 Defendants Charged in Connection with Over $6.5 Billion in Alleged Fraud

component: Office of the Attorney General

body_text: The Justice Department today announced the 2026 National Health Care Fraud Takedown, which resulted in charges against 455 defendants, including 90 doctors and other licensed medical professionals, for their alleged participation in health care fraud and opioid abuse schemes involving over $6.5 billion in false claims and significant patient harm, including death. Today’s Takedown represents a new era in federal, state, and international cooperation to combat health care fraud: cases in 56 federal districts and 45 U.S. states and territories, with 50 state Medicaid Fraud Control Units participating, the most in Department history. In addition, unprecedented international cooperation over the two-week Takedown resulted in the apprehension and return to the United States of the following health care fraudsters: one defendant in Kyrenia in connection with an over $3.7 billion scheme; two defendants in Estonia in connection with a previously charged $10.6 billion scheme; and, in the Philippines, one of FBI’s Most Wanted Fraudsters in connection with a previously-charged $1.2 billion telemedicine fraud scheme. The Takedown involves the cutting-edge use of data analytics to target the worst actors; the seizure of over $182 million in cash, luxury vehicles, jewelry, and other assets; and full-spectrum accountability for all criminal actors from doctor’s offices to corporate boardrooms. Today’s coordinated enforcement action involves a whole-of-government approach, including: Actions by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to suspend 1,079 providers and revoke billing privileges for 1,403 providers. 48 Civil Monetary Payment settlements amounting to over $73 million, over 1,400 provider exclusions, and 25 actions by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (“HHS-OIG”) under the Civil Monetary Penalties Law seeking more than $10 billion in payments to the Medicare Trust Fund from payments that CMS caught and suspended before the funds were paid to the fraudulent providers. Civil charges against 13 defendants for $14.8 million in health care fraud schemes, as well as civil settlements with 31 defendants totaling $23 million. 928 administrative cases by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) seeking the revocation of authority to handle and/or prescribe controlled substances since October 1, 2025. “This year’s National Health Care Fraud Takedown represents the greatest whole-of-government effort to combat health care fraud in our Nation’s history,” said Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche. “Under the decisive leadership of President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance, the White House Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, and our law enforcement partners, this administration has ushered in a new era of enforcement that will safeguard taxpayer dollars.” “We are aggressively scaling our offensive against anyone using health care as a front to steal from the American people,” said Assistant Attorney General Colin M. McDonald of the Justice Department’s National Fraud Enforcement Division. “As today’s cases and arrests show, there is no case too big, no scheme too complex, and no hiding place too remote for our relentless fraud-fighting team. Our message is simple: if you put profit over patients, you should expect to be put in prison.” “Health care fraud steals from taxpayers, exploits vulnerable patients, and puts lives at risk,” said U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. “Today’s historic enforcement action sends a clear message: if you use our health care system to enrich yourself at the expense of patients or the American people, we will find you, we will prosecute you, and we will hold you accountable. HHS will continue working with our law enforcement partners to protect patients, safeguard taxpayer dollars, and restore integrity to our health care system.” “The coordination in the Health Care Fraud Takedown reinforces the Trump Administration’s efforts to end the crimes of bad actors who have ripped off U.S. taxpayers,” said Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin. “This is a whole of government effort, to hold those who defraud our nation accountable. Our message is clear: if you steal from American taxpayers, you will face the consequences.” “This results of this nationwide healthcare takedown are historic,” said FBI Director Kash Patel. “Under the leadership of President Trump, Vice President Vance, and the White House Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, this FBI worked alongside our DOJ partners to arrest and charge over 450 people, including almost 100 medical professionals, for over $6 billion in alleged healthcare fraud schemes - showing the enormous amount of work done by our interagency law enforcement team over the last month and beyond. While today’s announcement is one of the largest on record–every arrest is a continued message to criminal actors who rob American taxpayers that you will not get away with your crimes.” Fraudulent Wound Care Schemes Charges were filed against 11 defendants, including a company executive and eight medical professionals, across six districts in connection with billions of dollars in fraudulent claims for amniotic wound allografts. In the District of Arizona, the Vice President of Sales for a company that sold allografts was charged in a nationwide illegal kickback and health care fraud scheme. From approximately December 2021 through June 2024, providers billed Medicare over $4 billion for this company’s allografts, resulting in over $2 billion in payments. This significant spike in allograft billings was alleged to have been driven not by medical necessity, but by a kickback scheme that generated substantial profit margins and lavish lifestyles for marketers and providers who participated. The company did not manufacture allografts and instead acquired allografts from tissue banks and relabeled them for sale at a 2,000% mark-up, charging up to $1,450 per square centimeter. The defendant is alleged to have paid illegal kickbacks of approximately 40% of that amount, allowing marketers and medical providers to pocket approximately $500-600 per square centimeter. These lucrative kickbacks allegedly caused the defendant and others to target hospice patients and apply the allografts without coordination with the patients’ treating physicians, without proper treatment for infection, to superficial wounds that did not need this treatment, and to areas that far exceeded the size of the wound. The defendant received over $24 million from the company, which he used to purchase multi-million-dollar houses, million-dollar life insurance policies, luxury vehicles, including a $135,000 Maserati, and luxury watches. This follows 15.5- and 14-year sentences obtained last year in connection with the scheme . Today’s charges reflect the Department’s intention to prosecute both the architects of fraud and those who betray their oath to carry out the scheme. In the Southern District of Texas, a nurse practitioner was charged for a $906 million scheme in which she applied medically unnecessary allografts and billed Medicare more than $1 million per patient on average. As alleged, the defendant used the fraud proceeds to purchase high-end vehicles, real estate, and luxury jewelry, and to fund the construction of a $4.6 million of a beach resort in the Philippines. The government seized over $30 million in bank accounts, a $594,000 Ferrari 296 GTS, seven other high-end vehicles, an $865,000 custom Bulgari necklace, and $1 million worth of other luxury jewelry. $865,000 Bulgari necklace seized as proceeds of alleged Medicare fraud scheme involving wound allografts; rendering of beach resort in the Philippines constructed with $4.6 million allegedly stolen from Medicare in wound allograft fraud scheme Similarly, in the Middle District of Florida, three defendants were charged for their roles in an $118 million allograft fraud scheme where a nurse practitioner allegedly used the proceeds to fund her lavish lifestyle, including a luxury box at an NFL stadium and over $400,000 in fine art. The Health Care Fraud Unit’s Data Analytics Team detected a spike in payment for allografts, leading to prosecutions. CMS separately realigned payment, reducing Medicare’s payment to $127 per square centimeter starting on January 1, 2026. If CMS had not taken action to address unprecedented spending on allografts, the Part B premium increase caused by allograft payments alone would have cost every Medicare beneficiary in the country an extra $11 a month. “Prosecuting criminals who steal from American patients is necessary—but stopping them before a single dollar leaves the building is smarter,” said CMS Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz. “CMS is done playing catch-up. We’re deploying advanced data analytics to expose fraud networks, freeze suspicious payments, and shut down bad actors before they can do damage to the programs that millions of Americans depend on.” Data Fusion Center, Financial Intelligence Review Team, and Data Analytics Enhancements The Health Care Fraud Unit is a leader in employing advanced data analytics. Its Data Fusion Center —announced as part of last year’s Takedown and comprised of experts from the Unit’s Data Analytics Team, HHS-OIG, FBI, and other agencies—used advanced analytics in many of the cases charged today. The Department is announcing the first prosecution arising from the Fusion Center’s Financial Intelligence Review Team, which was formed last year to combine traditional data analytics with financial analysis, in connection with a $67 million scheme to bill Illinois Medicaid for behavioral health services that were not provided. The defendant allegedly submitted claims to Medicaid for 500 or more hours of counseling and therapy services per day, well in excess of what the providers on staff could render even if all providers were working 24 hours per day, and diverted over $27 million to brokerage accounts, $10 million to a luxury car dealership he set up, $4 million for real estate purchases and home improvements, one million for jewelry, watches, purchases, and other luxury items, and over $616,022 for vehicles. Data analysis established that patients were hospitalized at other institutions on days that the defendant billed for behavioral health services, and the Health Care Fraud Unit’s specialized prosecutors opened the investigation within five days of the financial intelligence review. The defendant was arrested less than seven months later at the airport Sunday night attempting to leave the country. Yacht and Bentley Continental GT purchased with proceeds of alleged fraud In the Central District of California, charges were brought against a hospice owner and two marketers for a $27.7 million Medicare fraud scheme in which the hospice owner allegedly tried to avoid detection through a scheme to purchase information of the recently deceased from a funeral home employee. The defendant was allegedly carrying out a hospice fraud scheme in which he fraudulently enrolled patients who were not terminally ill. Concerned that Medicare and law enforcement used data analytics to monitor the percentage of patients discharged from hospice alive (an indicator of fraud), the hospice owner allegedly paid illegal kickbacks of $1,000 to $3,000 per person to a funeral home employee in exchange for deceased Medicare beneficiaries’ information. The defendant then allegedly billed Medicare for a few days of hospice services for these recently-deceased individuals who hadn’t received hospice care and created fake, back-dated medical records claiming that the beneficiaries had been seen by a physician, thereby allegedly seeking to deceive Medicare by reducing his outlier data metrics. In today’s Takedown, the Department announced the seizure of over $27 million in fraudulent Medicare payments in the Southern District of Florida as part of a data-driven effort to target “bust-out schemes” involving 12 clinics that billed Medicare millions of dollars for allografts that were never provided to patients. This novel and proactive “follow and seize the money” approach maximized recovery of stolen taxpayer dollars. To enhance the deployment of advanced analytics to target health care fraud, the Fraud Division and CMS announced today that they have entered an agreement whereby the Fraud Division will be provided cloud computing space in the CMS Integrated Data Repository environment in which to deploy advanced data analytics algorithms and artificial intelligence tools. In addition, the Fraud Division entered into agreements with the Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Trade Commission aimed at breaking down data silos and improving access to information critical to identifying and combatting health care fraud. CMS also is announcing today that it is developing a Claims Core processing with electronic attestation, identify verification, and IP address log-in, and working to get pledges that all Medicaid, Managed Care, and other plans report the same standardized data fields used for Medicare Part B claims data. Patient Harm Health care fraud is a top white-collar priority of the Department because it both steals from the taxpayers and risks harm to patients by corrupt medical providers. In the Southern District of Florida, the medical director of a cardiovascular testing and treatment practice was charged in connection with an $89 million scheme to bill for unnecessary cardiovascular tests, such as EKGs and echocardiograms, conducted on student athletes on school campuses. According to the charges, the defendant and his co-conspirators used marketing tactics designed to prey on fears that student athletes could die from sudden cardiac arrest. The defendant then allegedly falsified diagnoses to defraud health care benefit programs for the testing. Despite knowing, as the defendant wrote, that “these kids could be high risk . . . one of them drops dead on the field, they’re coming after both of us,” he allegedly rubber stamped the test results as normal without reviewing them—sometimes approving test results within mere seconds—such that student athletes with cardiac abnormalities were not informed that they needed to stop participating in sports, risking sudden cardiac arrest. Despite one patient’s test results showing an enlarged heart, the defendant allegedly signed off on the test results as normal within approximately 11 seconds of accessing the 63 cardiovascular test result images. Approximately 24 days later, the student athlete died from complications related to an enlarged heart during a basketball practice. “Safeguarding the integrity of federal health care programs is central to our mission, and the results of this year’s National Health Care Fraud Takedown reflect the strength of our collective commitment. The cases announced today demonstrate not only the scale, but the seriousness of the misconduct uncovered, ranging from patient harming schemes to multibillion dollar fraud operations,” said HHS Inspector General T. March Bell. “HHS-OIG will continue to pursue those who engage in such conduct and hold them accountable. I am grateful for the tireless work of our special agents and for the partnership we share with our federal, state, and local law enforcement colleagues as we work together to protect patients and preserve public funds.” In Alaska, state prosecutors charged a defendant for medical assistance fraud based on allegations that, while working as a personal care attendant for a Medicaid recipient, the defendant submitted false claims for regularly attending to the recipient’s health and hygiene, at the same time that she was admitted to the hospital for suffering from severe neglect, including being soiled in urine. Medicaid Fraud Data shows that Medicaid is a vital government benefit program increasingly targeted by criminals. Building upon the success of the recent Minnesota Health Care Fraud Takedown and the Acting Attorney General’s authorization of an enhancement for the Health Care Fraud Unit to investigate Medicaid fraud nationwide, today’s Takedown includes the largest number of Medicaid fraud defendants and Medicaid fraud loss charged in Department history: 295 defendants and over $518 million in false claims submitted to Medicaid. In the Eastern District of New York, charges were brought against eight defendants for their role in a $38 million fraud on New York Medicaid for social adult day care services that were medically unnecessary, procured by kickbacks to marketers and beneficiaries, and never provided. Although the permitted occupancy of the social adult day cares (shown below) was only 30 people, the defendants fraudulently submitted claims for services provided to hundreds of beneficiaries per day. Interior of Brooklyn social adult day care centers where allegedly fraudulent bills to New York Medicaid claimed hundreds of beneficiaries received services per day In the Eastern District of Virginia, the co-owner of a mental health company was charged with a $49 million Virginia Medicaid fraud scheme that targeted the homeless by offering them illegal bribes in the form of hotel stays in exchange for using their Medicaid numbers to bill for crisis stabilization services that they did not need or receive. In the District of Arizona, a defendant was charged for submitting $44 million in fraudulent claims for behavioral services, primarily targeting Native Americans struggling with substance abuse. As alleged, the defendant billed for services that were never provided and falsified therapy notes to reflect that patients had attended therapy sessions. Transnational Organizations, International Cooperation, and the Most Wanted Fraudsters List Today’s Takedown demonstrates that no fraudster can hide from the law, whether in the United States or abroad, and involved unprecedented international cooperation. In the 2025 National Health Care Fraud Takedown , 29 defendants were charged for their roles in a transnational criminal organization alleged to have submitted over $10 billion in fraudulent claims. Since then, the organization continued the scheme, and, in the Southern District of Florida, Ibrahim Hilmi was charged in connection with an additional $3.7 billion in false claims for urinary catheters and other durable medical equipment that was never provided. Though the defendant fled, he was apprehended in Kyrenia and made his initial appearance yesterday in the Southern District of Florida. In addition, two other members of the organization who were charged in last year’s Takedown were apprehended in Estonia, extradited to the United States, and made their initial appearance in the Eastern District of New York on June 12. Five additional defendants were charged in connection with the scheme. Ibrahim Hilmi landing in the United States after being apprehended in a $3.7 billion fraud On June 4, the FBI announced the creation of the Most Wanted Fraudsters List . The list included Herb Kimble, a fugitive in a $1.2 billion telemedicine and durable medical equipment scheme, who, on June 8—just four days later—was apprehended in the Philippines. On June 16, Kimble was indicted in the District of South Carolina with three counts of failure to appear at court hearings. In connection with the Takedown, as a result of the apprehension of Kimble and one other recently-apprehended fraudster on the list, today the FBI announced two new additions to the Most Wanted Fraudsters List: Khalid Satary, wanted in a $547 million genetic testing Medicare fraud scheme, who, after being released on bond over the government’s objection, fled the country and is believed to be in the United Arab Emirates; and Emylee Thai, wanted in a $90 million genetic testing Medicare fraud scheme, who was released on bond, cut-off her ankle monitor, and fled to Vietnam via private charter using a fake passport. The Department thanks the governments of Estonia, the Philippines, and Turkey for their cooperation in the apprehension of these health care fraud fugitives and defendants. Illegal Opioid Distribution 36 defendants, including 28 licensed medical professionals, were charged in connection with the alleged illegal diversion of prescription opioids and other controlled substances that resulted in patient harm. In the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, three defendants were charged with conspiracy to unlawfully distribute controlled substances. The defendants allegedly operated a voicemail refill line that allowed patients to request and receive refills of Schedule II controlled substance prescriptions—though some patients who used the refill line to obtain Schedule II controlled substances from the defendants suffered drug overdoses and died, the defendants continued to operate the refill line to prescribe Schedule II controlled substances without interacting with patients. In the Southern District of Texas, a pharmacist and two clinic managers were charged by indictment with drug conspiracy in connection with the distribution of more than 3.4 million pills of opioids and other controlled substances, many of which were prescribed to patients brought to the clinics and pharmacy by street-level drug traffickers for further distribution. “DEA occupies a unique place in this fight—we sit at the intersection of healthcare, regulation, and law enforcement. Our job is to protect the controlled substance supply chain and ensure medications reach patients who legitimately need them,” said DEA Administrator Terrance Cole. “Those who exploit that system for personal profit threaten both public safety, public health, and the integrity of our healthcare system. We will continue to identify these criminals, stop them, and hold them accountable.” “Health care fraud is not a victimless crime — it robs American workers of their earned benefits, steals from taxpayers, and undermines the very programs meant to protect them. The Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General is committed to rooting out these despicable schemes with unrelenting determination,” said Anthony P. D’Esposito, Inspector General, U.S. Department of Labor. “Together, with our agency and law enforcement partners, we are dismantling fraudulent operations and holding perpetrators accountable for their crimes against the American people. Real care doesn’t come with kickbacks and fake claims. To every fraudster exploiting the system: your time is up. We will find you; we will investigate you, and we will bring you to justice.” Today’s Takedown was led and coordinated by the Department’s Health Care Fraud Unit and its core partners from U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, HHS-OIG, FBI, DEA, and Medicaid Fraud Control Units (MFCUs) across the country. The cases are being prosecuted by Health Care Fraud Strike Force teams, 56 U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, and 45 State Attorneys General’s Offices nationwide. Acting Health Care Fraud Chief Jacob Foster, Acting Principal Assistant Chief Rebecca Yuan, Assistant Chief Justin Woodard, and Data Analyst Elizabeth Nolte, all of the Health Care Fraud Unit, led and coordinated this year’s Takedown. Assistant Chief Emily Gurskis and Acting Assistant Chiefs Miriam Glaser Dauermann and Jil Simon provided valuable coordination assistance. The cases are being prosecuted by the Health Care Fraud Unit’s National Rapid Response, Florida, Gulf Coast, Los Angeles, Midwest, New England, Northeast, Texas, and West Coast Strike Forces; U.S. Attorneys’ Offices for the Middle District of Alabama, District of Arizona, Central District of California, Southern District of California, District of Colorado, District of Connecticut, District of Delaware, Middle District of Florida, Northern District of Florida, Southern District of Florida, Northern District of Georgia, District of Hawaii, District of Idaho, Northern District of Illinois, Northern District of Iowa, Southern District of Iowa, Western District of Kentucky, Eastern District of Louisiana, Middle District of Louisiana, District of Massachusetts, Eastern District of Michigan, Southern District of Mississippi, District of Montana, District of Nebraska, District of New Hampshire, District of New Jersey, District of New Mexico, Eastern District of New York, Northern District of New York, Southern District of New York, Eastern District of North Carolina, Middle District of North Carolina, Western District of North Carolina, Northern District of Ohio, Northern District of Oklahoma, Western District of Oklahoma, District of Oregon, Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Middle District of Pennsylvania, Western District of Pennsylvania, District of Puerto Rico, District of Rhode Island, District of South Carolina, District of South Dakota, Middle District of Tennessee, Western District of Tennessee, Northern District of Texas, Southern District of Texas, Western District of Texas, District of Vermont, Eastern District of Virginia, Western District of Virginia, Northern District of West Virginia, Southern District of West Virginia, Eastern District of Wisconsin, and Western District of Wisconsin; and State Attorneys General’s Offices, through their MFCUs, in Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Virgin Islands, Washington, Wisconsin, and West Virginia. In addition, the MFCUs for Alabama, North Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, and Virigina participated in the investigation of federal cases announced today. In addition to FBI, HHS-OIG, DEA, and MFCUs, CMS, Homeland Security Investigations, the Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of Inspector General, IRS Criminal Investigation, Defense Criminal Investigative Service, Department of Labor, United States Postal Service Office of Inspector General, Office of Personnel Management Office of Inspector General, and other federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies participated in the operation. “Healthcare fraud schemes deprive veterans of needed services and rob taxpayers,” said Inspector General of the Department of Veterans Affairs Cheryl Mason. “As VA Inspector General, I made it a priority for all VA OIG components to actively pursue those who attempt to defraud VA healthcare programs.” “Today’s coordinated takedown reflects the Department of War Office of Inspector General’s unwavering commitment to protecting Service members, retirees, and their families from those who exploit federal health care programs,” said Inspector General Platte B. Moring III. “Working alongside our law enforcement partners, the Defense Criminal Investigative Service continues to pursue schemes that endanger patients, erode trust in the medical system, and divert resources critical to military readiness.” On April 7, the Department of Justice announced the creation of the National Fraud Enforcement Division. The Fraud Division is laser-focused on investigating and prosecuting those who commit fraud against the American people. The Department’s work to combat fraud supports President Trump’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, a whole-of-government effort chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse within Federal benefit programs. Prior to the charges announced as part of today’s nationwide Takedown and since its inception in March 2007, the National Fraud Division’s Health Care Strike Force program, currently comprised of nine strike forces operating in federal districts across the country, has charged more than 6,200 defendants who collectively billed federal health care programs and private insurers more than $45 billion. In addition, CMS, working in conjunction with HHS-OIG, are taking steps to hold providers accountable for their involvement in health care fraud schemes. More information can be found at www.justice.gov/criminal-fraud/health-care-fraud-unit . An indictment, information, or complaint is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. ***** The following materials related to today’s announcement are available on the Health Care Fraud Unit’s website through these links: Graphics and Resources Case Descriptions Court Documents


title: Navajo Man Sentenced to 31 Years in Prison for Sexual Abuse

component: USAO - Arizona

body_text: PHOENIX, Ariz. – Last week, McRenoisen Morales Sagina, 57, of St. Michaels, Arizona, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Diane J. Humetewa to 31 years in federal prison, followed by 10 years of supervised release. On March 18, 2026, a federal jury convicted Sagina of one count of Sexual Abuse by Threat, two counts of Abusive Sexual Contact by Threat, and three counts of Sexual Abuse Without Consent. The evidence at trial showed that between Jan. 2025 and March 10, 2025, Sagina, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, sexually abused a 17-year-old on the Navajo Nation Reservation, in St. Michaels, Arizona. As part of the abuse, Sagina, who served as a medicine man on the Navajo Nation Reservation, threatened the victim with witchcraft and violence. Sagina’s threats included pointing a shotgun at the victim to make her take her clothes off. The FBI Phoenix Division’s Gallup Office and the Navajo Nation Criminal Investigator’s Office conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Genevieve A. Ozark and Tracy Van Buskirk, District of Arizona, Phoenix, prosecuted the case. CASE NUMBER: CR-25-08052-PCT-DJH RELEASE NUMBER: 2026-104_Sagina # # # For more information on the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/az/ Follow the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, on X @USAO_AZ for the latest news.


title: Massachusetts Man Charged in $5 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme as Part of National Health Care Fraud Takedown

component: USAO - Massachusetts

body_text: BOSTON – A Stoughton, Mass., man has been charged in connection with an alleged scheme to defraud Medicare of over $5 million by submitting claims for durable medical equipment (DME) that was medically unnecessary and tainted by kickbacks. The charges filed today in federal court in Boston are part of the Department of Justice’s 2026 National Health Care Fraud Takedown. The charges announced today by U.S. Attorney Leah B. Foley are part of a strategically coordinated, nationwide law enforcement action that resulted in charges against 455 defendants, including 90 doctors and other licensed medical professionals, for their alleged participation in health care fraud and opioid abuse schemes involving over $6.5 billion in false claims and significant patient harm, including death. Today’s Takedown represents a new era in federal, state, and international cooperation to combat health care fraud: cases in 56 federal districts and 45 U.S. states and territories, with 50 state Medicaid Fraud Control Units participating, the most in Department history. In addition, unprecedented international cooperation over the two-week Takedown resulted in the apprehension and return to the United States of the following health care fraudsters: one defendant in Kyrenia in connection with an over $3.7 billion scheme; two defendants in Estonia in connection with a previously charged $10.6 billion scheme; and, in the Philippines, one of FBI’s Most Wanted Fraudsters in connection with a previously-charged $1.2 billion telemedicine fraud scheme. The Takedown involves the cutting-edge use of data analytics to target the worst actors; the seizure of over $182 million in cash, luxury vehicles, jewelry and other assets; and full-spectrum accountability for all criminal actors from doctor’s offices to corporate boardrooms. Today’s coordinated enforcement action involves a whole-of-government approach, including: Actions by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to suspend 1,079 providers and revoke billing privileges for 1,403 providers; 48 Civil Monetary Payment settlements amounting to over $73 million, over 1,400 provider exclusions, and 25 actions by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General under the Civil Monetary Penalties Law seeking more than $10 billion in payments to the Medicare Trust Fund from payments that CMS caught and suspended before the funds were paid to the fraudulent providers; Civil charges against 13 defendants for $14.8 million in health care fraud schemes, as well as civil settlements with 31 defendants totaling $23 million; and 928 administrative cases by the Drug Enforcement Administration seeking the revocation of authority to handle and/or prescribe controlled substances since Oct. 1, 2025. Bhamin Chhatrapati, 40, of Stoughton, Mass., was charged with conspiracy to commit health care fraud in connection with over $5.1 million fraudulently billed to Medicare, of which over $2.6 million was paid. It is alleged that from approximately February 2023 through in or around September 2024, Chhatrapati and co-conspirators conspired to commit health care fraud by: working with telemarketers or call centers to obtain medical information from or about Medicare beneficiaries; using that information to prepare medical documentation for Medicare beneficiaries that made it appear that medical practitioners had legitimately prescribed medically necessary DME; submitting fraudulent claims to Medicare for orders for DME; receiving reimbursement from Medicare for these DME orders; and paying the telemarketers per brace order approved by Medicare. The cases are being prosecuted by the Health Care Fraud Unit’s National Rapid Response, Florida, Gulf Coast, Los Angeles, Midwest, New England, Northeast, Texas, and West Coast Strike Forces; U.S. Attorneys’ Offices for the Middle District of Alabama, District of Arizona, Central District of California, Southern District of California, District of Colorado, District of Connecticut, District of Delaware, Middle District of Florida, Northern District of Florida, Southern District of Florida, Northern District of Georgia, District of Hawaii, District of Idaho, Northern District of Illinois, Northern District of Iowa, Southern District of Iowa, Western District of Kentucky, Eastern District of Louisiana, Middle District of Louisiana, District of Massachusetts, Eastern District of Michigan, Southern District of Mississippi, District of Montana, District of Nebraska, District of New Hampshire, District of New Jersey, District of New Mexico, Eastern District of New York, Northern District of New York, Southern District of New York, Eastern District of North Carolina, Middle District of North Carolina, Western District of North Carolina, Northern District of Ohio, Northern District of Oklahoma, Western District of Oklahoma, District of Oregon, Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Middle District of Pennsylvania, Western District of Pennsylvania, District of Puerto Rico, District of Rhode Island, District of South Carolina, District of South Dakota, Middle District of Tennessee, Western District of Tennessee, Northern District of Texas, Southern District of Texas, Western District of Texas, District of Vermont, Eastern District of Virginia, Western District of Virginia, Northern District of West Virginia, Southern District of West Virginia, Eastern District of Wisconsin, and Western District of Wisconsin; and State Attorneys General’s Offices, through their MFCUs, in Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Virgin Islands, Washington, Wisconsin, and West Virginia. In addition, the MFCUs for Alabama, North Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, and Virigina participated in the investigation of federal cases announced today. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sarah Hoefle and Lauren Graber of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts’ Criminal Division. Descriptions of each case involved in today’s enforcement action are available on the Department’s website here . The District of Massachusetts worked with the Department’s Health Care Fraud Unit of the Fraud Division as well as the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. On March 26, 2026 , United States Attorney Leah B. Foley announced the creation of the Benefit & Voter Fraud Team, a district-wide initiative established in response to the rampant fraud being uncovered across Massachusetts. The Team is led by two senior federal prosecutors serving as Fraud Coordinators, whose mission it is to aggressively investigate and prosecute misuse of taxpayer-funded benefits in Massachusetts. Members of the public are encouraged to report suspected benefit fraud in Massachusetts by calling 1-855-SCAM-MA-1 (855-722-6621). On April 7, 2026, the Department of Justice announced the creation of the National Fraud Enforcement Division . The Fraud Division is investigating and prosecuting those who commit fraud against the American people. The Department’s work to combat fraud supports President Trump’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, a whole-of-government effort chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse within Federal benefit programs. The details contained in the charging document are allegations. The defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in the court of law.


title: Personal Care Attendant Pleads Guilty to Stealing from Vietnam War Veteran

component: USAO - Virginia, Western

body_text: ROANOKE, Va. – A personal care attendant, contracted with the Department of Veteran Affairs to provide personal care services to veterans, pled guilty to stealing from a Vietnam War Veteran she was tasked with caring for. Melissa Diana Simmons, 50, of Boones Mill, Virginia, pled guilty to forgery of government checks. Simmons and co-defendant James Patrick Brown were indicted in 2025. According to court documents and other evidence, Simmons met the victim in May 2022, when she was assigned as his in-home care provider, pursuant to a contract between her employer and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (“VA”). Beginning around December 2022, the victim began withdrawing significantly more money from his bank account than normal, sometimes through checks made out to Simmons and her boyfriend, Brown. After Simmons’s employer fired her in June 2023, she persuaded the victim to move in with her and Brown at their Boones Mill house. Beginning in July 2023, staff at the victim’s bank became suspicious as Simmons and Brown brought the victim to the bank drive-through for frequent and increasingly large withdrawals. Court records claim staff observed the victim’s condition deteriorate over time, from upbeat to hunched over, confused, and fearful. In mid-August 2023, Simmons had the victim add her as a signatory to the victim’s bank account. Within 30 days of being added to the victim’s account, the victim allegedly lost around $30,000 from Simmons and Brown’s continual, large withdrawals. In mid-September 2023, bank staff demanded Simmons come inside when she attempted another large withdrawal at the drive-through. Inside, staff saw the victim’s nose was burned from smoking while using his oxygen tank. He was confused and reeked of urine and feces. The victim could not remember when he last bathed, ate, or visited the VA Medical Center. Bank staff persuaded him to open a new account without Simmons as joint owner. As bank staff privately questioned the victim, Simmons grew belligerent, hitting the office window, and shouting at staff until police arrived. According to court records, Brown arrived at the bank sometime later with the victim asking how to get the victim’s VA benefits and social security checks direct deposited into the victim’s account. Brown also sought to have the victim withdraw between $60,000 and $70,000 from the account. The victim appeared to be in even worse physical condition than before. Bank staff observed an overwhelming stench of urine and feces. He was confused as to why he was withdrawing the money. Soon after the incident, Franklin County Adult Protective Services (“APS”) opened an investigation. An APS staff member administered a mental status exam on the victim, which showed the victim was suffering from dementia. On November 18, 2023, Simmons and Brown reported to the Roanoke County Fire and Rescue that the victim was non-responsive. Emergency responders rushed him to Roanoke Memorial Hospital, where he was admitted with acute respiratory failure and critically low oxygen saturation. Medical records showed methamphetamine in the victim’s system, even though he had no history of methamphetamine use and had no ability to independently travel. From January 2024 into April 2024, while the victim recovered at the hospital and later a rehab center, Simmons received four of the victim’s VA benefits checks though the United States Mail, totaling close to $8,000. The indictment claims Simmoms forged the victim’s signatures on these checks and deposited them into the victim’s new bank account. Simmons and Brown then used the victim’s debit card for their personal use, including spending thousands at a casino. On October 22, 2024, during an interview with agents of the VA Office of the Inspector General, Simmons admitted that she forged the victim’s VA checks, and that she and Brown spent the victim’s money with his debit card while he was in the hospital. The VA Office of the Inspector General, with assistance from the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office, is investigating the case. First Assistant United States Attorney Robert N. Tracci made the announcement. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Drew O. Inman and Keith A. Parrella are prosecuting the case. On April 7, the Department of Justice announced the creation of the Fraud Division. The Fraud Division is laser-focused on investigating and prosecuting those who commit fraud against the American people. The Department’s work to combat fraud supports President Trump’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, a whole-of-government effort chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse within Federal benefit programs.


title: Gordonsville Physician Indicted on Health Care Fraud and Controlled Substance Charges

body_text: NASHVILLE – Angela Moss, 55, of Gordonsville, Tennessee, has been charged in a federal indictment with seven counts of health care fraud and twelve counts of unauthorized distribution of controlled substances in connection with a multi-year scheme involving the prescribing of controlled substances without a legitimate medical purpose in the usual course of professional practice, announced Braden H. Boucek, United States Attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee. The indictment was unsealed following Moss's arrest. According to the indictment, Moss owned and operated Gordonsville Clinic and prescribed medically unnecessary controlled substances to patients for more than eight years. During that period, Moss issued prescriptions totaling more than 5.6 million pills and doses of controlled substances. The indictment alleges that many of those prescriptions were not issued for a legitimate medical purpose in the usual course of professional practice. The indictment further alleges that Moss prescribed excessive and inappropriate quantities and combinations of controlled substances, resulting in medically unnecessary prescriptions being issued to patients and contributing to patient abuse, misuse, and addiction. Moss allegedly failed to adequately monitor her patients' use and abuse of prescribed controlled substances and continued to prescribe excessive and inappropriate amounts of those drugs even after receiving warnings regarding her prescribing practices, including warnings from the Tennessee Department of Health. “Medical professionals occupy positions of extraordinary trust and responsibility,” said U.S. Attorney Braden H. Boucek. “When that trust is abused through the unlawful prescribing of controlled substances, patients can suffer serious harm, addiction can flourish, and taxpayer-funded health care programs can be defrauded. Our office will continue working with our law enforcement partners to investigate and prosecute those who contribute to prescription drug abuse and health care fraud.” This case is part of the Department of Justice's National Health Care Fraud Takedown, a coordinated nationwide law enforcement effort targeting health care fraud schemes that exploit patients, contribute to prescription drug abuse, and defraud federal health care programs. This case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Chris Suedekum is prosecuting the case. An indictment is merely an allegation. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty, beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. #####


title: Colorado Man Charged In Medicaid Fraud Scheme Connected To Arapahoe County Adult Daycare

component: USAO - Colorado

body_text: DENVER – The United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado along with the Colorado Attorney General’s Office announces that Mohamed Elias Omer, 35, was indicted by a federal grand jury on twelve counts of illegal remunerations to induce Medicaid beneficiaries to attend Nadina Adult Daycare Center, LLC., located in Arapahoe County. According to the indictment, Omer offered three $500 kickback payments in exchange for referrals of Medicaid beneficiaries for adult daycare, and $10,000 in other kickback payments described as “marketing expense(s)” or “office supply.” Medicaid is a federal health care program that is funded through taxpayer dollars that are distributed by the state through the Colorado Department of Health Care Policy and Financing. Medicaid provides adult daycare services to qualified Medicaid beneficiaries. The charges contained in the indictment are allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. The investigation is being conducted by the FBI Denver Field Office. The prosecution is being handled by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado and the Medicaid Fraud, Abuse & Neglect Unit in the Colorado Department of Law. On April 7, the Department of Justice announced the creation of the National Fraud Enforcement Division (‘Fraud Division’). The Fraud Division is laser-focused on investigating and prosecuting those who commit fraud against the American people. The Department’s work to combat fraud supports President Trump’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, a whole-of-government effort chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse within Federal benefit programs. Case Number: 26-cr-00140-DDD


title: Mobile County Man Sentenced for  Drug Trafficking and Firearm Offenses

component: USAO - Alabama, Southern

body_text: MOBILE, Ala. – On June 22, 2026, United States Chief District Judge Jeffrey U. Beaverstock sentenced Devin Lajuan Hudson to 75 months in federal prison for cocaine trafficking and possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. According to court documents, on August 6, 2025, a Mobile County Sheriff's Deputy conducted a traffic stop after observing Hudson commit a traffic violation. During the stop, deputies discovered that Hudson did not possess a valid driver's license. A subsequent search of the vehicle uncovered a distribution quantity of cocaine, Hydrocodone pills, Oxycodone pills, Alprazolam bars, a baby bottle containing liquid Promethazine, marijuana, two loaded handguns, and $993 in U.S. currency. Hudson had a juvenile child in the vehicle at the time of the stop. Following the arrest, deputies obtained and executed a search warrant at Hudson’s residence. During the search, law enforcement recovered an additional four ounces of cocaine packaged in one-ounce quantities, along with high-grade marijuana, approximately $2,000 in U.S. currency, a loaded Radical Firearms rifle, a loaded Glock 23 handgun, and a loaded MasterPiece Arms MAC-10-style 9mm handgun equipped with a suppressor and extended magazine. The investigation revealed that Hudson possessed multiple firearms in connection with his drug trafficking activities, leading to the federal charges and subsequent conviction. U.S. Attorney Sean P. Costello of the Southern District of Alabama made the announcement. The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Mobile County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney George F. May prosecuted the case on behalf of the United States. This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Homeland Security Task Forces (HSTF) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).


title: Headstone Salesman Who Defrauded Hundreds of Customers in Pennsylvania and New Jersey Pleads Guilty to  Wire Fraud and Tax Fraud

component: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)

body_text: PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney David Metcalf announced that Gregory J. Stefan Jr., 56, of Upper Merion, Pennsylvania, entered a plea of guilty today before United States District Judge Juan R. Sánchez to seven counts of wire fraud and four counts of filing a false tax return. The defendant was charged by superseding indictment in December 2024, arising from fraudulent business practices he employed in the operation and management of headstone sales companies, and his failure to report on his individual income tax returns any income he received from those companies. As detailed in court filings and statements, between January 2018 and September 2023, Stefan — through his businesses 1843 LLC and Colonial Memorials — defrauded hundreds of grieving customers by entering into contracts to provide custom headstone and engraving services for their deceased loved ones that he knew he would not deliver on the promised timeline, if at all. Stefan demanded large up-front payments from his customers (often 100% of the purchase price) but routinely failed to fulfill their orders by the projected delivery date. When customers reached out to request updates on the status of their overdue orders, he either ignored them or employed lulling tactics and assured them that their orders would be delivered shortly without taking any steps to follow through on those assurances. In all, Stefan failed to deliver, or provide refunds for, orders placed by almost 500 customers who had paid him in excess of $1.5 million. Stefan also falsely reported on his federal income tax returns that he earned no income whatsoever each year from 2018 through 2021. As part of his federal plea agreement, Stefan accepted responsibility for similar crimes charged in 10 local cases across Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware, which resulted in an additional $210,000 loss to victims. The defendant will be sentenced on a date to be determined and faces a maximum possible term of 152 years’ imprisonment. This case was investigated by the FBI and IRS Criminal Investigation and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jessica Rice. The U.S. Attorney’s Office thanks the Delaware County District Attorney’s Office, Northampton County District Attorney’s Office, Bergen County (N.J.) Prosecutor’s Office, Burlington County (N.J.) Prosecutor’s Office, Gloucester County (N.J.) Prosecutor’s Office, Middlesex County (N.J.) Prosecutor’s Office, Passaic County (N.J.) Prosecutor’s Office, and the Delaware Department of Justice for their assistance in investigating and reaching a global resolution of this case.


title: Northern District of Texas Charges 13 Health Care Fraudsters for Loss Over $360 Million

body_text: Thirteen defendants were among those charged in the Northern District of Texas as part of the 2026 National Health Care Fraud Takedown, announced United States Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Ryan Raybould, during a press conference held earlier today. The charges announced today by U.S. Attorney Raybould are part of a strategically coordinated, nationwide law enforcement action that resulted in charges against 455 defendants, including 90 doctors and other licensed medical professionals, for their alleged participation in health care fraud and opioid abuse schemes involving over $6.5 billion in false claims and significant patient harm, including death. Today’s Takedown represents a new era in federal, state, and international cooperation to combat health care fraud: cases in 56 federal districts and 45 U.S. states and territories, with 50 state Medicaid Fraud Control Units participating, the most in Department history. In addition, unprecedented international cooperation over the two-week Takedown resulted in the apprehension and return to the United States of the following health care fraudsters: one defendant in Kyrenia in connection with an over $3.7 billion scheme; two defendants in Estonia in connection with a previously charged $10.6 billion scheme; and, in the Philippines, one of FBI’s Most Wanted Fraudsters in connection with a previously-charged $1.2 billion telemedicine fraud scheme. The Takedown involves the cutting-edge use of data analytics to target the worst actors; the seizure of over $182 million in cash, luxury vehicles, jewelry, and other assets; and full-spectrum accountability for all criminal actors from doctor’s offices to corporate boardrooms. Today’s coordinated enforcement action involves a whole-of-government approach, including: Actions by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to suspend 1,079 providers and revoke billing privileges for 1,403 providers. 48 Civil Monetary Payment settlements amounting to over $73 million, over 1,400 provider exclusions, and 25 actions by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (“HHS-OIG”) under the Civil Monetary Penalties Law seeking more than $10 billion in payments to the Medicare Trust Fund from payments that CMS caught and suspended before the funds were paid to the fraudulent providers. Civil charges against 13 defendants for $14.8 million in health care fraud schemes, as well as civil settlements with 31 defendants totaling $23 million. 928 administrative cases by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) seeking the revocation of authority to handle and/or prescribe controlled substances since October 1, 2025. Contributing to the nationwide crackdown, the Northern District of Texas is prosecuting defendants in seven separate cases for crimes that targeted vulnerable patients and exploited taxpayer-funded programs. The Northern District of Texas cases represent collective fraudulent billing of more than $365 million submitted to federally-funded programs and other insurers. The defendants allegedly misappropriated funds intended to serve vulnerable populations—including elderly Medicare beneficiaries and members of the military—to further their own financial interests. The government seized over $35 million in cash, luxury vehicles, and other assets as part of the coordinated enforcement efforts. Those charged include: Devin Brodman of Coconut Creek, Florida; Kevin Curry of Frisco, Texas; Olubayo Idowu of DeSoto, Texas, James Lou Carlisle Jr. of Southlake, Texas, and Vaughn Anthony Brozek of Hurst, Texas; Catherine Maduka of Garland, Texas; Jason Charles Mareno of Irving, Texas, David Lee Lloyd of Meridian, Mississippi, Jason Kashou of Coral Springs, Florida, and Duc Ngoc Ly a/k/a Michael Ly of Frisco, Texas; Michael McMillan of Las Vegas, Nevada; and Neel Vivek Paithankar of Irving, Texas. “My office is committed to protecting victims and combating fraud against the United States wherever it is found,” United States Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Ryan Raybould said. “Today’s announcement sends a message that no quarter will be given to fraudsters and those who prey on vulnerable members of our community in the Northern District of Texas. It also serves as a reminder that medical professionals who violate the trust society places in them and exploit Americans for personal enrichment will be aggressively pursued and held accountable. My office’s participation in the National Health Care Fraud Takedown reflects our decentralized approach to pursuing fraud across the entirety of the Northern District and highlights the growing partnership we have with Main Justice and the investigating agencies in these efforts to protect victims and the public fisc.” “Today’s takedown underscores our unwavering commitment to protecting federal health care programs and the patients they serve,” said Special Agent in Charge Jason E. Meadows of the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG). “These individuals didn't just steal taxpayer money; they preyed on vulnerable patients and attacked the very foundation of public trust. Working alongside our partners, HHS-OIG will relentlessly pursue anyone who seeks to defraud federal health care programs and ensure they are brought to justice.” “The perpetrators of these fraud schemes billed Medicare and Medicaid for services that were either unnecessary or that were never provided to patients, in order to personally profit off of government-sponsored healthcare programs. These programs provide critical care and services to individuals in our communities that need it most,” said FBI Dallas Special Agent in Charge R. Joseph Rothrock. “The FBI and our law enforcement partners will continue to identify and investigate individuals responsible for defrauding government programs, costing taxpayers tens of billions of dollars annually.” “Today’s takedown sends a clear and unified message: individuals who exploit TRICARE or other federal healthcare programs will face swift and decisive action,” said Special Agent in Charge Chad Gosch of the Department of War Office of Inspector General’s Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS). “Those who siphon resources from our service members, veterans, and vulnerable beneficiaries undermine mission readiness, drive up healthcare costs, and erode public trust. DCIS, in close coordination with our federal partners, will continue to aggressively identify, investigate, and dismantle illegal schemes that target TRICARE and other government healthcare systems for personal gain.” “Through the tenacious work of our investigators, auditors, and inspectors, the VA OIG plays a vital role in combating healthcare fraud throughout the country,” said Inspector General Cheryl L. Mason, Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General. “Healthcare schemes steal taxpayer dollars and divert critical resources away from veterans. The VA OIG will vigorously investigate anyone who seeks to defraud VA programs.” “My office has worked tirelessly to expose and end fraud, and has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for the people of Texas. I will continue to work to find and stop fraud to protect Texans’ hard-earned dollars and ensure their tax dollars are not wasted or abused,” said Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. Those charged in the Northern District of Texas as part of the historic Takedown include: Devin Jack Brodman , 32, of Coconut Creek, Florida, was charged by information with conspiracy to defraud the United States and paying and receiving kickbacks in connection with the submission of fraudulent claims by two North Texas labs to Medicare for laboratory testing services, including genetic testing. As alleged in the Information, Brodman, who co-owned Neva Diagnostics and Areahou Diagnostics, billed Medicare for laboratory testing services that were ineligible for reimbursement and were ordered and procured through kickbacks and bribes. He allegedly concealed the submission of the fraudulent claims to Medicare. In total, the two labs billed Medicare approximately $65 million for laboratory testing services and were paid approximately $43 million. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General and Texas Attorney General’s Office – Medicaid Fraud Control Unit investigated the case. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Marty Basu of the Northern District of Texas. Kevin Darnell Curry , 63, of Frisco, Texas, was charged by indictment with health care fraud, offer and payment of illegal kickbacks and bribes, and engaging in monetary transactions in criminally derived property in connection with a scheme to defraud TRICARE by fraudulently billing for transcranial magnetic stimulation (“TMS”) treatments that he knew were not provided, not provided as represented, medically unnecessary, induced by the payment of illegal kickbacks and bribes, and/or otherwise ineligible for reimbursement by TRICARE. As alleged in the indictment, Curry, owner and operator of Acuity TMS, submitted and caused the submission of approximately $26,878,282 in false and fraudulent claims to TRICARE, of which approximately $17,075,566 was paid. Assets valued at approximately $200,000 were seized as part of the case, including $136,022 in cash and a 2024 gold Tesla Cybertruck Curry purchased with proceeds from his fraudulent scheme. The Department of War’s Criminal Investigative Service, Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Dallas Field Office, Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General, and Texas Attorney General’s Office – Medicaid Fraud Control Unit investigated the case. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Ethan Womble of the Northern District of Texas and Trial Attorney Yael Mash of the Texas Strike Force. Dr. Olubayo Idowu , 75, of Desoto, Texas, Dr. James Lou Carlisle Jr. , 53, of Southlake, Texas, and Vaughn Anthony Brozek , 56, of Hurst, Texas, were charged by superseding indictment with conspiracy to commit health care fraud in connection with a scheme to defraud Medicare and other health care benefit programs through the submission of more than $25 million in false and fraudulent medical claims for electroencephalography (“EEG”) testing. As alleged in the superseding indictment, Idowu and Carlisle, both physicians, and Brozek, a nurse practitioner, conspired to unlawfully enrich themselves from 2020 until at least 2023 by accepting kickbacks and bribes for patient EEG testing that was medically unnecessary. The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Dallas Field Office, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, Texas Attorney General’s Office – Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, and Department of War’s Defense Criminal Investigative Service investigated the case. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Douglas B. Brasher of the Northern District of Texas. Catherine Nkeiru Maduka , 66, of Garland, Texas, was charged by indictment with conspiracy to commit health care fraud and health care fraud in connection with a hospice scheme, which resulted in over $3.1 million in false claims being submitted to Medicare. As alleged in the indictment, Maduka, the owner and CEO of Saint Catherine’s Hospice, recruited patients who were ineligible for hospice care and billed Medicare for services that were never provided. The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Dallas Field Office, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, and Texas Attorney General’s Office – Medicaid Fraud Control Unit investigated the case. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Douglas B. Brasher of the Northern District of Texas. Jason Charles Mareno , 52, of Irving, Texas, David Lee Lloyd , 56, of Meridian, Mississippi, Jason Kashou , 40, of Coral Springs, Florida, and Duc Ngoc Ly , a/k/a Michael Ly , 52, of Frisco, Texas, were charged by superseding indictment with conspiracy to violate the Federal Anti-Kickback Statute in connection with a scheme to bill Medicare for COVID-19 test kits. As alleged in the superseding indictment, the defendants provided Medicare beneficiary information to two coconspirators who own lab businesses, who in turn used that information to bill Medicare for COVID-19 test kits they sent to the beneficiaries who had not requested them and in some cases to beneficiaries who were deceased. The lab owners then kicked back a portion of the Medicare reimbursement to the defendants in cash and through a series of financial transactions designed to conceal the kickbacks. As a result of the scheme, the defendant and their coconspirators caused more than $73 million in fraudulent claims to be submitted to Medicare for COVID-19 test kits. The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Dallas Field Office, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, and the Department of War’s Defense Criminal Investigative Service investigated the case. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Douglas B. Brasher of the Northern District of Texas. Michael McMillan , 55, of Las Vegas, Nevada, was charged by indictment with health care fraud, offer and payment of illegal kickbacks and bribes, and engaging in monetary transactions in criminally derived property in connection with the submission of approximately $268 million in false and fraudulent claims to Medicare and other government healthcare benefit programs related to wound care products. As alleged in the indictment, McMillan, the owner of Protectus LLC and related entities, offered various skin substitute products to physicians and medical providers under an illegal kickback arrangement that guaranteed that medical providers profited thousands of dollars for every skin substitute claim the providers billed the government programs. Disguising the kickbacks as rebates or discounts, McMillan and Protectus received approximately $174 million. Assets valued at approximately $35 million were seized as part of the case. The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Dallas Field Office, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, Department of War’s Defense Criminal Investigative Service, and Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General investigated the case. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Marty Basu and Chad Meacham of the Northern District of Texas. Neel Vivek Paithankar , 25, of Irving, Texas, was charged by indictment with conspiracy to commit health care fraud and health care fraud in connection with a scheme to submit approximately $2.3 million of false and fraudulent claims to Medicare for medically unnecessary durable medical equipment (“DME”). As alleged in the indictment, Paithankar, owner of VMP Health Care LLC, facilitated the solicitation of Medicare beneficiaries through telemarketers posing as Medicare representatives offering free DME. He then shipped the DME to Medicare beneficiaries who either did not need and/or did not want the products. In total, VMP Health Care LLC submitted approximately 3,700 false claims to Medicare, for which Medicare paid $1.2 million. The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Dallas Field Office and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General investigated the case. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Elise Aldendifer of the Northern District of Texas. Descriptions of each case involved in today’s enforcement action are available on the Department’s website here . An information or indictment is merely an allegation of criminal conduct, not evidence. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law .


title: U.S. Attorney’s Office announces charges against three defendants in the Eastern District of Virginia as part of national health care fraud takedown

component: National Fraud Enforcement Division

body_text: ALEXANDRIA, Va. – Today, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia announced charges against three defendants in connection with alleged schemes to defraud Medicare and Medicaid. The charges filed in federal court are part of the Department of Justice’s 2026 National Health Care Fraud Takedown. The charges announced today are part of a strategically coordinated, nationwide law enforcement action that resulted in charges against 455 defendants, including 90 doctors and other licensed medical professionals, for their alleged participation in health care fraud and opioid abuse schemes involving over $6.5 billion in false claims and significant patient harm, including death. Today’s Takedown represents a new era in federal, state, and international cooperation to combat health care fraud: cases in 56 federal districts and 45 U.S. states and territories, with 50 state Medicaid Fraud Control Units participating, the most in Department history. In addition, unprecedented international cooperation over the two-week Takedown resulted in the apprehension and return to the United States of the following health care fraudsters: one defendant in Kyrenia in connection with an over $3.7 billion scheme; two defendants in Estonia in connection with a previously charged $10.6 billion scheme; and, in the Philippines, one of FBI’s Most Wanted Fraudsters in connection with a previously-charged $1.2 billion telemedicine fraud scheme. The Takedown involves the cutting-edge use of data analytics to target the worst actors; the seizure of over $182 million in cash, luxury vehicles, jewelry, and other assets; and full-spectrum accountability for all criminal actors from doctor’s offices to corporate boardrooms. Today’s coordinated enforcement action involves a whole-of-government approach, including: Actions by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to suspend 1,079 providers and revoke billing privileges for 1,403 providers. 48 Civil Monetary Payment settlements amounting to over $73 million, over 1,400 provider exclusions, and 25 actions by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG) under the Civil Monetary Penalties Law seeking more than $10 billion in payments to the Medicare Trust Fund from payments that CMS caught and suspended before the funds were paid to the fraudulent providers. Civil charges against 13 defendants for $14.8 million in health care fraud schemes, as well as civil settlements with 31 defendants totaling $23 million. 928 administrative cases by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) seeking the revocation of authority to handle and/or prescribe controlled substances since Oct. 1, 2025. The following individuals were charged in the Eastern District of Virginia: Jair Barbour , 37, of Henrico, was charged by information with making false statements relating to health care matters in connection with fraudulently billing Medicaid for mental health services totaling $345,670.93. As alleged in the criminal information, Barbour, a qualified mental health provider, submitted hundreds of falsified progress notes describing mental health sessions that never occurred, dramatically overstated the number of hours she worked, and documented services that were impossible due to overlapping or conflicting times. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert S. Day. Mikia Noble , 37, of North Chesterfield, was charged by information with conspiracy to commit health care fraud in connection with a crisis mental health services fraud scheme on Virginia Medicaid. As alleged in the information, Noble, the Chief Operating Officer of Advancing Communities Everywhere, conspired with others to target low-income, often homeless, Medicaid recipients by purporting to provide those recipients with mental health services that the recipients did not receive and often did not need. Noble and others submitted approximately $49.6 million in false and fraudulent claims to Medicaid, of which approximately $38.6 million was paid. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert S. Day of the Eastern District of Virginia and Trial Attorneys Zachary H. Ray and Lauren Randell of the National Rapid Response Strike Force. Abdul Rehman Sirhandi , 57, of Aldie, was charged by information with conspiring to make false statements in health care fraud matters in connection with a durable medical equipment (DME) fraud scheme. As alleged in the information, Sirhandi acted as the straw owner of a DME company, Pulse Medical Supply, and conspired with others in Texas and Pakistan to submit approximately $780,627 in false and fraudulent claims to Medicare, of which approximately $313,233 was paid. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Russell L. Carlberg of the Eastern District of Virginia and Trial Attorney Zachary H. Ray of the National Rapid Response Strike Force. The cases are being prosecuted by the Health Care Fraud Unit’s National Rapid Response, Florida, Gulf Coast, Los Angeles, Midwest, New England, Northeast, Texas, and West Coast Strike Forces; U.S. Attorneys’ Offices for the Middle District of Alabama, District of Arizona, Central District of California, Southern District of California, District of Colorado, District of Connecticut, District of Delaware, Middle District of Florida, Northern District of Florida, Southern District of Florida, Northern District of Georgia, District of Hawaii, District of Idaho, Northern District of Illinois, Northern District of Iowa, Southern District of Iowa, Western District of Kentucky, Eastern District of Louisiana, Middle District of Louisiana, District of Massachusetts, Eastern District of Michigan, Southern District of Mississippi, District of Montana, District of Nebraska, District of New Hampshire, District of New Jersey, District of New Mexico, Eastern District of New York, Northern District of New York, Southern District of New York, Eastern District of North Carolina, Middle District of North Carolina, Western District of North Carolina, Northern District of Ohio, Northern District of Oklahoma, Western District of Oklahoma, District of Oregon, Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Middle District of Pennsylvania, Western District of Pennsylvania, District of Puerto Rico, District of Rhode Island, District of South Carolina, District of South Dakota, Middle District of Tennessee, Western District of Tennessee, Northern District of Texas, Southern District of Texas, Western District of Texas, District of Vermont, Eastern District of Virginia, Western District of Virginia, Northern District of West Virginia, Southern District of West Virginia, Eastern District of Wisconsin, and Western District of Wisconsin; and State Attorneys General Offices, through their MFCUs, in Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Virgin Islands, Washington, Wisconsin, and West Virginia. In addition, the MFCUs for Alabama, North Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, and Virigina participated in the investigation of federal cases announced today. Descriptions of each case involved in today’s enforcement action are available on the Department’s website here . On April 7, the Department of Justice announced the creation of the National Fraud Enforcement Division (Fraud Division). The Fraud Division is laser-focused on investigating and prosecuting those who commit fraud against the American people. The Department’s work to combat fraud supports President Trump’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, a whole-of-government effort chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse within Federal benefit programs. An indictment, information, or complaint is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.


title: Mother-Daughter Duo Charged in $9.5 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme; Part of National Healthcare Fraud Takedown

component: USAO - California, Southern

body_text: SAN DIEGO – A federal grand jury indictment charges a mother and daughter with conspiring to defraud Medicare by billing millions of dollars for wound care services while the mother—the licensed nurse practitioner listed as the provider—was serving time in federal prison. The charges are part of the Department of Justice’s 2026 National Health Care Fraud Takedown. According to the indictment, Blanca Estela Cardenas, a San Diego nurse practitioner and owner of Mobile Care Medical Providers, LLC and B&R Wound Care, Inc., and her daughter, Raquel Pasillas, allegedly carried out a scheme to bill Medicare for mobile medical services between April and October 2024. Prosecutors allege that during that time, Cardenas was incarcerated, serving a federal sentence for an unrelated bulk cash smuggling conviction and was therefore unable to personally provide care or supervise medical services as required under Medicare regulations. Despite her incarceration, the indictment alleges, the businesses continued submitting claims to Medicare under Cardenas’ National Provider Identifier (NPI), falsely representing that she was the rendering provider for the services. According to prosecutors, Pasillas—who held operational leadership roles at the businesses but had no medical license or certification—personally provided medical services to Medicare beneficiaries, including wound care and the application of costly skin substitute allografts. Over the six-month period, the defendants allegedly submitted approximately $9.5 million in claims to Medicare and received approximately $5.5 million in reimbursements. The indictment further alleges the pair diverted fraud proceeds for personal use, including more than $4.7 million in cash withdrawals, deposits into their personal bank accounts, and rent payments for Cardenas’ residence while she remained in custody. “Every dollar stolen through health care fraud is a dollar taken from patient care,” said U.S. Attorney Adam Gordon. “Those who commit health care fraud cause real harm because they drain critical resources from programs meant to support some of our most vulnerable community members,” said Special Agent in Charge Mark Remily of the FBI’s San Diego Field Office. “Schemes like this undermine trust in our health care system and drive up costs for everyone. Working closely with HHS OIG and the Justice Department, the FBI will continue to pursue those who exploit federally funded programs and ensure they face the consequences of their actions.” The charges announced today by U.S. Attorney Adam Gordon are part of a strategically coordinated, nationwide law enforcement action that resulted in charges against 455 defendants, including 90 doctors and other licensed medical professionals, for their alleged participation in health care fraud and opioid abuse schemes involving over $6.5 billion in false claims and significant patient harm, including death. Today’s takedown represents a new era in federal, state, and international cooperation to combat health care fraud: cases in 56 federal districts and 45 U.S. states and territories, with 50 state Medicaid Fraud Control Units participating, the most in Department history. In addition, unprecedented international cooperation over the two-week takedown resulted in the apprehension and return to the United States of the following health care fraudsters: one defendant in Kyrenia in connection with an over $3.7 billion scheme; two defendants in Estonia in connection with a previously charged $10.6 billion scheme; and, in the Philippines, one of FBI’s Most Wanted Fraudsters in connection with a previously-charged $1.2 billion telemedicine fraud scheme. The takedown involves the cutting-edge use of data analytics to target the worst actors; the seizure of over $182 million in cash, luxury vehicles, jewelry, and other assets; and full-spectrum accountability for all criminal actors from doctor’s offices to corporate boardrooms. Today’s coordinated enforcement action involves a whole-of-government approach, including: Actions by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to suspend 1,079 providers and revoke billing privileges for 1,403 providers. 48 Civil Monetary Payment settlements amounting to over $73 million, over 1,400 provider exclusions, and 25 actions by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (“HHS-OIG”) under the Civil Monetary Penalties Law seeking more than $10 billion in payments to the Medicare Trust Fund from payments that CMS caught and suspended before the funds were paid to the fraudulent providers. Civil charges against 13 defendants for $14.8 million in health care fraud schemes, as well as civil settlements with 31 defendants totaling $23 million. 928 administrative cases by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) seeking the revocation of authority to handle and/or prescribe controlled substances since October 1, 2025. The cases are being prosecuted by the Health Care Fraud Unit’s National Rapid Response, Florida, Gulf Coast, Los Angeles, Midwest, New England, Northeast, Texas, and West Coast Strike Forces; U.S. Attorneys’ Offices for the Middle District of Alabama, District of Arizona, Central District of California, Southern District of California, District of Colorado, District of Connecticut, District of Delaware, Middle District of Florida, Northern District of Florida, Southern District of Florida, Northern District of Georgia, District of Hawaii, District of Idaho, Northern District of Illinois, Northern District of Iowa, Southern District of Iowa, Western District of Kentucky, Eastern District of Louisiana, Middle District of Louisiana, District of Massachusetts, Eastern District of Michigan, Southern District of Mississippi, District of Montana, District of Nebraska, District of New Hampshire, District of New Jersey, District of New Mexico, Eastern District of New York, Northern District of New York, Southern District of New York, Eastern District of North Carolina, Middle District of North Carolina, Western District of North Carolina, Northern District of Ohio, Northern District of Oklahoma, Western District of Oklahoma, District of Oregon, Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Middle District of Pennsylvania, Western District of Pennsylvania, District of Puerto Rico, District of Rhode Island, District of South Carolina, District of South Dakota, Middle District of Tennessee, Western District of Tennessee, Northern District of Texas, Southern District of Texas, Western District of Texas, District of Vermont, Eastern District of Virginia, Western District of Virginia, Northern District of West Virginia, Southern District of West Virginia, Eastern District of Wisconsin, and Western District of Wisconsin; and State Attorneys General’s Offices, through their MFCUs, in Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Virgin Islands, Washington, Wisconsin, and West Virginia. In addition, the MFCUs for Alabama, North Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, and Virigina participated in the investigation of federal cases announced today. Descriptions of each case involved in today’s enforcement action are available on the Department’s website here . The case in the Southern District of California is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Blanca Quintero. DEFENDANTS Case Number 26cr2236 Blanca Estela Cardenas Age: 55 Chula Vista, CA Raquel Pasillas Age: 33 Chula Vista, CA SUMMARY OF CHARGES Conspiracy to Commit Health Care Fraud – Title 18, U.S.C., Sec. 1349 Maximum penalty: Ten years in prison, $250,000 fine or twice the pecuniary gain or loss, whichever is greater Health Care Fraud – Title 18, U.S.C., Sec. 1347 Maximum penalty: Ten years in prison, $250,000 fine or twice the pecuniary gain or loss, whichever is greater INVESTIGATING AGENCIES FBI U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General *Indictments and criminal complaints are merely allegations and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. On April 7, the Department of Justice announced the creation of the National Fraud Enforcement Division ('Fraud Division'). The Fraud Division is laser-focused on investigating and prosecuting those who commit fraud against the American people. The Department’s work to combat fraud supports President Trump’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, a whole-of-government effort chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse within Federal benefit programs.


title: Alabama Provider Pays $300,000 to Resolve False Claims as Part of 2026 National Health Care Fraud Takedown

component: USAO - Alabama, Middle

body_text: Today, United States Attorney Thomas Govan announced that the Middle District of Alabama has reached a $300,000 civil settlement resolving allegations that New Life Center for Change, Inc., doing business as Teen University, and its owner, Alfonza Smith, 72, of Smiths Station, Alabama, submitted false claims to the Alabama Medicaid Agency. The settlement, filed in federal court, is part of the Department of Justice’s 2026 National Health Care Fraud Takedown. According to the government, the Phenix City-based provider billed Alabama Medicaid for Basic Living Skills services for at-risk children that were not actually rendered. “Protecting the integrity of Medicaid and ensuring that vulnerable children receive the services they are promised are among our highest priorities,” said United States Attorney Thomas Govan. “When providers bill for care that was never delivered, they waste taxpayer dollars and betray the trust placed in them. I want to thank the Alabama Medicaid Fraud Control Unit and the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Office of Inspector General for their exceptional work and collaboration in helping us hold providers accountable and safeguard taxpayer funds.” The settlement announced today by U.S. Attorney Govan is part of a strategically coordinated, nationwide law enforcement action that resulted in charges against 455 defendants, including 90 doctors and other licensed medical professionals, for their alleged participation in health care fraud and opioid abuse schemes involving over $6.5 billion in false claims and significant patient harm, including death. Today’s Takedown represents a new era in federal, state, and international cooperation to combat health care fraud: cases in 56 federal districts and 45 U.S. states and territories, with 50 state Medicaid Fraud Control Units participating, the most in Department history. In addition, unprecedented international cooperation over the two-week Takedown resulted in the apprehension and return to the United States of the following health care fraudsters: one defendant in Kyrenia in connection with an over $3.7 billion scheme; two defendants in Estonia in connection with a previously charged $10.6 billion scheme; and, in the Philippines, one of FBI’s Most Wanted Fraudsters in connection with a previously charged $1.2 billion telemedicine fraud scheme. The Takedown involves the cutting-edge use of data analytics to target the worst actors; the seizure of over $182 million in cash, luxury vehicles, jewelry, and other assets; and full-spectrum accountability for all criminal actors from doctor’s offices to corporate boardrooms. Today’s coordinated enforcement action involves a whole-of-government approach, including: Actions by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to suspend 1,079 providers and revoke billing privileges for 1,403 providers. 48 Civil Monetary Payment settlements amounting to over $73 million, over 1,400 provider exclusions, and 25 actions by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (“HHS-OIG”) under the Civil Monetary Penalties Law seeking more than $10 billion in payments to the Medicare Trust Fund from payments that CMS caught and suspended before the funds were paid to the fraudulent providers. Civil charges against 13 defendants for $14.8 million in health care fraud schemes, as well as civil settlements with 31 defendants totaling $23 million. 928 administrative cases by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) seeking the revocation of authority to handle and/or prescribe controlled substances since October 1, 2025. The cases are being prosecuted by the Health Care Fraud Unit’s National Rapid Response, Florida, Gulf Coast, Los Angeles, Midwest, New England, Northeast, Texas, and West Coast Strike Forces; U.S. Attorneys’ Offices for the Middle District of Alabama, District of Arizona, Central District of California, Southern District of California, District of Colorado, District of Connecticut, District of Delaware, Middle District of Florida, Northern District of Florida, Southern District of Florida, Northern District of Georgia, District of Hawaii, District of Idaho, Northern District of Illinois, Northern District of Iowa, Southern District of Iowa, Western District of Kentucky, Eastern District of Louisiana, Middle District of Louisiana, District of Massachusetts, Eastern District of Michigan, Southern District of Mississippi, District of Montana, District of Nebraska, District of New Hampshire, District of New Jersey, District of New Mexico, Eastern District of New York, Northern District of New York, Southern District of New York, Eastern District of North Carolina, Middle District of North Carolina, Western District of North Carolina, Northern District of Ohio, Northern District of Oklahoma, Western District of Oklahoma, District of Oregon, Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Middle District of Pennsylvania, Western District of Pennsylvania, District of Puerto Rico, District of Rhode Island, District of South Carolina, District of South Dakota, Middle District of Tennessee, Western District of Tennessee, Northern District of Texas, Southern District of Texas, Western District of Texas, District of Vermont, Eastern District of Virginia, Western District of Virginia, Northern District of West Virginia, Southern District of West Virginia, Eastern District of Wisconsin, and Western District of Wisconsin; and State Attorneys General’s Offices, through their MFCUs, in Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Virgin Islands, Washington, Wisconsin, and West Virginia. In addition, the MFCUs for Alabama, North Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, and Virigina participated in the investigation of federal cases announced today. Descriptions of each case involved in today’s enforcement action are available on the Department’s website here . Assistant U.S. Attorney MaryLou E. Bowdre worked with the Alabama Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit and the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG) to resolve the Middle District of Alabama case. On April 7, the Department of Justice announced the creation of the National Fraud Enforcement Division (“Fraud Division”). The Fraud Division is laser-focused on investigating and prosecuting those who commit fraud against the American people. The Department’s work to combat fraud supports President Trump’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, a whole-of-government effort chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse within Federal benefit programs.