The US Department of Justice announced on Thursday a sweeping nationwide operation that culminated in the indictment of nearly 200 individuals implicated in healthcare fraud schemes, encompassing fraudulent claims exceeding $2.7 billion.
In the past two weeks, authorities have charged 193 individuals, including 76 medical professionals such as doctors and nurse practitioners, in federal courts across the country. The operation resulted in the seizure of over $231 million in various assets, including cash, luxury vehicles, and gold.
Attorney General Merrick Garland stressed, “It does not matter if you are a trafficker in a drug cartel or a corporate executive or medical professional employed by a health care company, if you profit from the unlawful distribution of controlled substances, you will be held accountable.”
The crackdown revealed sweeping allegations, including a $900 million scheme involving amniotic wound grafts, the illegal distribution of millions of Adderall pills by a tech company, a $90 million fraud involving HIV medication, and fraudulent addiction treatment schemes valued at $146 million. Other notable allegations involved extensive telemedicine and lab fraud exceeding $1.1 billion and more than $450 million tied to various other healthcare fraud and opioid-related schemes.
Among the charged individuals are two owners of a wound care company and two nurse practitioners who allegedly targeted elderly Medicare patients with unnecessary and expensive procedures as part of a strategy to defraud the federal health insurance program.
Also implicated are five individuals linked to Done Global Inc. and its affiliate, Done Health P.C., who were charged with the illegal distribution of millions of Adderall pills. The company’s CEO and Clinical President were embroiled in an internet-based scheme to distribute Adderall and other stimulants and were charged on June 13. Included in these charges is a Florida nurse practitioner employed by Done, who prescribed over 1.5 million stimulant pills nationwide.
Thursday’s announcement also detailed charges against 14 individuals for their involvement in the illegal prescription and distribution of opioids, which led to millions in fraudulent billings. This group comprises several medical professionals who improper prescribed opioids, Suboxone, and other controlled substances.
Furthermore, an extensive crackdown involved 126 defendants regarding various healthcare fraud schemes that falsely billed Medicare, Medicaid, and private insurers for over $450 million in unnecessary or unprovided treatments. Highlighting the reach of these schemes, ten individuals nationwide were charged in relation to fraudulent COVID-19 testing practices, including a $65 million scheme in the Southern District of Florida.
For further details, the complete DOJ announcement can be read here.