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LOS ANGELES () — The U.S. Department of Justice on Thursday announced what they called a major health care fraud takedown throughout Southern California, which included the arrest of doctors and nurses.
First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli was joined during a press conference by several law enforcement agencies including the FBI, and Dr. Mehmet Oz, head of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
They said they served a series of search and arrest warrants throughout the region, from Covina to Lakewood. Eight people were arrested and more than a dozen are being charged for suspected health fraud which federal authorities say resulted in the loss of some $60 million.
They also mentioned fraudulent hospice care.
“These defendants recruited beneficiaries who were not terminally ill and paid them to pose as patients receiving hospice care. MediCare then paid… hundreds of millions of dollars on false and fraudulent claims submitted by fraudsters,” Essayli said.
Oz said authorities are going to review every single hospice in California, saying that they hope to do it this year.
During the press conference, Essayli and Oz pointed the finger at Gov. Gavin Newsom and Los Angeles County, saying there’s been a lack of leadership.
Eyewitness News asked for the percentage of the cases discussed Thursday that began being investigated under the current Trump administration, and the number of cases like them that were prosecuted during the first Trump administration.
Oz only said, in part, that hospice fraud began to really take off during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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