The Doj announces accusations of historic health care fraud involving elderly patients

The Ministry of Justice (DOJ) announced on Monday accusations against more than 300 defendants, alleging that they had misleading patients to pay and sometimes receive medical care they did not need.

In turn, the chief of the Criminal Division of DoJ, Matthew Galeotti, said that the defendants also tried to defraud Medicare and other health insurance programs funded by taxpayers and private on around $ 14.6 billion.

The announcement marked the “greatest fraud in terms of coordinated health in the history of the Ministry of Justice,” Galeotti said at a press conference.

A set of costs included, for example, a charge Against three accused in Arizona who would have conspired to buy and give health insurance grafts to the elderly called “allograft of amniotic wounds”. Defenders would have collected millions of dollars in practice.

5.4 million patient files exposed in the violation of health care data

Matthew Galeotti, head of the criminal division of the Ministry of Justice, joined by the administrator for centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Mehmet Oz, speaks during a press conference on June 30, 2025, in Washington, DC (Images Kevin Dietsch / Getty)

One of the accused, a nurse practitioner, applied the transplants to patients even if they were “medically unreasonable and useless,” said the indictment. The nurse would have applied them to patients on the terminal phase in hospice, some of whom were far from dying.

Although this specific medical practice is generally non -invasive, Galeotti noted that it was part of a billion dollar health care fraud program that stripped patients of “dignity and peace” in their last days.

“This conduct is exactly as insensitive and disturbing as it may seem,” said Galeotti. “Patients and their families trusted these providers with their lives. Instead of receiving care, they have become victims of developed criminal regimes.”

An MJ official said that in response to a question of Fox News Digital that skin transplants was an “emerging zone” of health care fraud “, in particular given the important amount of money for which they can sometimes charge more than $ 1,000 per square centimeter.”

Health care fraud caseWho were all publicly shared online, lasted the country and the globe. Defenders included owners of medical supply companies and health professionals, including 25 doctors.

The Texas doctor was sentenced to 10 years in prison in one of the “most important” cases of damage to patients

The administrator of Medicare and Medicaid Services, Dr. Mehmet Oz, speaks during a ceremony at the Oval Office of the White House on April 18, 2025. (Andrew Harnik / Getty)

An FBI official announced during the press conference that a program, called “Operation Gold Rush”, led at least 20 members of a transnational criminal organization, including defendants based in Russia, being charged as a maladie and money laundering operation of $ 10 billion centered on catheters.

The health fraud unit of the MJ criminal division led the effort. Galeotti said on Monday that the DOJ had also launched a “merger center” in which it would associate with other agencies to consolidate data on health care as part of its fraud surveys.

The FBI announced that a regime has led to at least 20 members of a transnational criminal organization. (Brendan Smialowski / AFP via Getty Images)

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Galeotti and Dr. Mehmet Oz, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator, also used the press conference to plead for more advice.

“We need your help, the American people,” said Oz. “Why? More than half of the denunciation advice we obtain are intended for health care fraud and more than half of the fraud against our government is in health care.”