Fifteen people were charged in California with conspiracies to commit health care fraud involving over $2 billion in false claims, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Monday, as the administration of President Donald Trump escalates its statewide effort to combat misuse of public funds.
Federal prosecutors revealed the allegations Thursday, October 22, 2026, after examinations of alleged fraud involving substance misuse treatment centers, hospice services and needless medical procedures and prescription drug claims.
The Justice Department said at least eight people were apprehended, including six medical professionals, among those charged. The cases involved false claims filed to government-funded and private health care programs, including Medicare and California’s Medicaid program, Medi-Cal, prosecutors said.
The largest lawsuit reportedly covered over $1.6 billion in claims involving substance misuse treatment centers accused of providing little or no real treatment. Prosecutors say the operators and accomplices recruited vulnerable people, including the homeless and people undergoing addiction rehabilitation programs, and used their insurance coverage to produce bogus billings.
Prosecutors cited court documents that said some patients were reportedly provided free flights, hotels, cash, gift cards and other incentives to attend the institutions. The investigators also said patients were repeatedly enrolled or transferred between clinics to keep insurance claims active, even if the promised therapy was not provided.
In another case, a chiropractor and a surgeon are suspected of being part of a conspiracy that allegedly resulted to nearly $134 million in medically unnecessary vascular treatments billed to Medicare. Some patients were reportedly given repeated treatments, and prosecutors say some of them had intrusive surgeries without medical justification.
The enforcement action also involves three suspected hospice fraud schemes totalling more than $138 million in false claims. Prosecutors say some clinicians signed up people who weren’t terminally ill and billed Medicare for services that weren’t needed or weren’t given. Another issue involves false medication claims allegedly filed to Medi-Cal.
The California action is part of a wider federal effort to probe fraud in public assistance and government-funded programs. Enforcement actions against more than 40 defendants in cases involving nearly $42 million in alleged or proven fraud against the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, commonly known as SNAP, and other United States Department of Agriculture programs were announced by federal officials October 21.
The administration recently unveiled a $25 million whistleblower effort to encourage citizens to report suspected theft involving federal monies.
“The investigations are designed to protect taxpayers and ensure public resources reach those who qualify for aid, Justice Department officials say. But the charges announced in California are still only claims, and suspects are assumed innocent until proven guilty at trial.
Among the federal authorities looking into the instances are the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Criminal Investigation division of the Internal Revenue Service and the Office of Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services.
California is now the center of the administration’s increasingly aggressive push against fraud in its current operation, which has scrutinised healthcare billing, food aid and other publicly financed programs in multiple states.
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