DOJ: 450 Defendants Charged for Alleged Healthcare Fraud for $6.5 Billion
In one case, the indictment alleges $4.6 million went towards constructing hotel at a Philippines beach resort
The Department of Justice announced it has charged 450 defendants for alleged healthcare fraud totaling $6.5 billion.
“Since June 8, we’ve charged 455 defendants across 56, like I said a minute ago, US attorney’s offices and 45 US states and territories, as alleged in the various indictments,” said acting Attorney General Todd Blanche. “These individuals participated in healthcare fraud schemes involving over $6.5 billion in false claims submitted to Medicare, Medicaid, and other health care programs.”
.@DAGToddBlanche announces charges against 455 defendants across 45 states and territories for healthcare fraud schemes involving over $6.5 billion in false claims submitted to Medicare, Medicaid, and other programs. pic.twitter.com/ofeHhUAbmX
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) June 23, 2026
Blanche described one alleged fraud scheme involving wound care:
- Arizona corporate executive – $1 billion fraud involving unnecessary wound graphs, costing Medicare over $1 million per patient
- The indictment charges 11 defendants with over $2 billion in fraud and fraudulent claims related to wound care.
The defendants allegedly used the money to live a luxury lifestyle:
- Multi-million dollar homes
- Luxury vehicles ($135,000 Maserati)
- Jewelry ($865,000 Bulgari necklace)
- Constructing a $4.6 million hotel at a Philippine beach resort
“The coordinated actions of the past two weeks have resulted in over $182 million in cash and other assets seized, making clear our health care fraud enforcement efforts generate a significant return on investment for our taxpayers,” added Blanche.
Several Los Angeles healthcare businesses face charges, including four hospices that bribed and provided items to enroll people who were not terminal. The owners allegedly made $27.7 million in Medicare claims, receiving $26l.9 million:
According to the indictment, prosecutors allege the scheme involved enrolling deceased Medicare beneficiaries in hospice after their deaths using stolen personal information obtained through a funeral home employee, and creating backdated medical records to make it appear the patients had qualified for hospice before they died.
The owner of the hospices, Oren David Shachar, also personally approached Medicare beneficiaries, according to the indictment, misrepresented hospice as a program focused on improving quality of life rather than end-of-life care, and concealed that enrolling in hospice would limit their access to other Medicare-covered treatments. The indictment further alleges that the owner paid beneficiaries up to $400 a month in cash and provided groceries, alcohol, televisions, furniture and other gifts to keep them enrolled, while also offering referral payments to beneficiaries who recruited others into the program.
The FBI arrested 11 people in California accused of hospice fraud in April.
“This is the second largest amount ever charged in a single healthcare fraud operation,” HHS Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr. told the press. “Every fraudulent dollar diverted into a criminal scheme is a dollar unavailable for patient care, for medical innovation, or for services for vulnerable Americans.”
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz laid out two important cases:
- In Q1 2026, they made 1,006 fraudulent providers’ billing privileges (40% more than the same period last year).
- Made 1000 Medicare payment suspensions, nearly 800 from California alone (500% more than last year)
Oz mentioned that the fraud team identified these cases using tools that previous administrations rarely used.
“We use administrative muscle to push things through, and we are closing loopholes that fraudsters have avoided and been exploiting for years,” stated Oz. “Those days are over.”
.@DrOzCMS: In Q1 2026, we revoked 1,006 fraudulent providers' billing privileges (40% more than same period last year).
In the first half of the year, we've made 1,000 Medicaid payment suspensions (500% more than same period last year).
And we're just getting started. pic.twitter.com/4agvXUvLQG
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) June 23, 2026
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Comments
This is obviously completely political in nature so I suspect one of our fine district court judges to dismiss the charges immediately. Hell I expect them to just order the DOJ to see that the defendants are paid triple the damages for the inconvenience of having the temerity to charge them.
Just label it a learing experience.
Once convicted these folks will likely face more than just ‘learing’ during their prison term.
Well past time to bring modern tools/methods to combat fraud into use by Govt. Far too much willful blindness by the States who administer these Federal programs. Probably need some statutory changes to automatically insert Fed oversight into State agencies when a certain level of fraud is found by routine methods. Definitely need to increase penalties for malfeasance by govt employees.
They need to audit all the states for every program that disseminates federal dollars to them and do so with reasonable frequency. Yes it’s expensive but the alternative is worse and maybe that will lead to less programs being financed (Probably not)
If I had my way we’d cut our losses with a 25% reduction across the board then block grant to the States. If some blue State wants to use funds to pay for drag queen story time at the free heroin site next to the elementary school that you gotta walk past 100 hobos to get into down unpaved streets with buildings aflame past closed down hospitals b/c they used the funds on dumbass ideas so be it.
It’s getting more difficult not to be in favor of accelerating the inevitable crash out so we get it over with and get past it. That or a national divorce.
I believe this power is bestowed upon
traffic court judges ;…. to dismiss this affront with prejudice….
/sarc
MSM talking points:
Trump cutting off healthcare to the elderly.
Trump is denying hospice care to our most vulnerable citizens.
Trump is criminalizing going to the Dr.
If people are able to steal money from these programs so easily, then someone is not doing their job when they authorize payments. There on too many people signing checks who don’t care. We’ll probably be able to claw back only 10% of what they stole and they will only get a couple of years before they are out stealing again. We need to do a forensic audit so that we can locate those who are responsible for approving this theft, the claims examiners, and discipline them for being lackadaisical with OUR money.
Heck, all these defendants need to have these charges dropped is to get a judge in DC, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, or Minnesota, and they are home free!
The deliberate indifference of the federal government to fraud indicts the whole thing. It is so massive, permeates so many programs, that fraud seems to be its reason for existence.
I feel like a fool, working to make a living. I should have just stolen it.
Again looks like things are happening.
A lot of the systems in our country are based on some level of trust. Our currency says, “In God we trust”. This can be interpreted two ways: We trust God, and “in God” we also trust each other.
It seems that fewer of us live according to those words on our currency.
The Federal Government needs to terminate its involvement in any welfare program that is administered by the States.
The States run the programs and the feds foot the bill (in whole or in large part), and the result is zero incentive to prevent fraud. Worse, for D governed jurisdictions, the fraud is seen as a positive good. It brings federal money to the State, it funds NGO’s that are a key constituency for D politicians – both for campaign contributions and reliable votes.
If the States are going to run them, then 100% of the funding should be through State level taxes. At least then the politicians that enable the fraud will have to deal with the budget deficits that result from it.
Otherwise, there will never be any accountability.
Virtually all of these programs should be abolished entirely anyway.
The issue is if Feds take control of day to day Admin then that’s a lot more Federal employees. My preference would be a drastic cut in all these programs where States run Federally funded programs, say 25%, then block grant to the States. Let them run it into the ground if they wish nut no bailouts. Divide the pool of block grant $ into shares for each CD and 2 shares for Senators. The only requirements on the States, beyond not stealing it, would be spending it:
1. On the programs specified but they decide how much
2. Within each CD with State directly controlling only the 2 Senator Shares. She’d the funds pass through to County and municipal government for the CD
3. Audits/eligibility check compliance/cooperation with Feds. If the fees find malfeasance the entire block grant for that State gets cut by 10% each time. Stack the cuts cumulatively.
In other news, they have developed new leads on the Lindbergh kidnapping.
After full prosecution, two words: full restitution. Full garnishment of any future wages (presuming any of them actually work), seizure of all assets retirement accounts etc. No exceptions after conviction. All assets and accounts frozen prior to the court date.
Anything less is punishing the taxpayers even more, and perpetuating the rot that has infested our legal system.