$900 Million Medicare Fraud Results in 300 Arrests

The government has arrested more than 300 physicians, clinic owners, and other healthcare professionals for stealing more than $900 million from Medicare.

The defendants are charged with a number of different Medicare fraud schemes including home healthcare fraud and pharmacy fraud.  In most cases, the government charges that the defendants billed for services that were not medically necessary or were never actually provided to patients.

Some of the defendants are accused of recruiting drug addicts on the streets and in homeless shelters by offering them narcotics in return for their Medicare or Medicaid cards.  The defendants allegedly used the Medicare and Medicaid cards to bill for services that were not medically necessary and, in many case, not actually provided. 

In one case, an individual pharmacist in New York is accused of obtaining more than $51 million by filing fraudulent Medicare and Medicaid claims.  

Today’s nationwide takedown exceeds a record set last year, when 243 defendants were arrested for defrauding Medicare of more than $700 million.  Think about that for a moment.  Every year, the government arrests people who steal billions of dollars from the Medicare and Medicaid program.  Every year!

Medicare and Medicaid fraud is a threat to every hard-working citizen in this country.  When billions of dollars are stolen from these programs every year, it puts your future benefits at risk.  In fact, the trust fund supporting Medicare is projected to run out of money within the next 10-15 years.

If you have evidence of Medicare or Medicaid fraud, you must come forward to help the government put a stop to it.  Your efforts will be protected and rewarded.  Whistleblowers are entitled to legal protections and financial rewards of up to 30% of the amount recovered by the government.

To schedule a free and confidential consultation with an experienced whistleblower lawyer, call John Howley, Esq. at (212) 601-2728.