Federal Officials Cite Record Number of Fraud Prosecutions, but See More to Do

Attorney General Eric Holder said federal prosecutors charged a record number of people with medical fraud in 2009, but there is still a lot more work to be done, according to a release from the Justice Department.

Prosecutors charged more than 800 defendants, obtained more than 580 convictions and recovered more than $2.2 billion dollars last year under the False Claims Act.
However, an estimated $60 billion in public and private healthcare spending is lost each year to healthcare fraud.

"The scope of the problem is simply shocking," Mr. Holder said at the National Summit on Health Care Fraud in Washington.

Federal authorities last May established the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team, which deploys Medicare Fraud Strike Forces to select cities where unexplained, aberrant billing rates indicate that healthcare fraud may be especially high.

Dow Jones Newswires reports that the White House plans to ask Congress to increase funding for fighting Medicare fraud by 80 percent.

Mr. Holder added that the Justice Department will seek guidance from the insurance industry and healthcare providers.

Read the Justice Department's release on healthcare fraud.