Feds Charge $2B California Health Care Fraud

The Department of Justice announced a major crackdown on healthcare fraud, charging 15 individuals, including six medical professionals, with schemes that defrauded taxpayers of nearly $2 billion through unnecessary surgeries, sham treatments, and false hospice care. The arrests involve cases in Los Angeles, Texas, and Illinois, highlighting extensive exploitation of vulnerable patients, particularly within Los Angeles, which prosecutors identify as a major fraud hub. This crackdown is part of broader efforts to address rising Medicaid and Medicare fraud, exacerbated by relaxed regulations during the COVID-19 pandemic.