OIG Releases List of 10 Most-Wanted Healthcare Fraudsters

The Office of Inspector General has released a list of the country's 10 most-wanted healthcare fraudsters, who have allegedly cost taxpayers more than $124 million collectively, according to an OIG news release.

The Most-Wanted Fugitives List includes photos and profiles of each featured fugitive, whose individual status' will change once captured. The OIG website also includes an online fugitive tip form and the OIG hotline number to report fugitive-related information.

OIG's Most Wanted Fugitives include the following:

  • Carlos, Luis and Jose Benitez — The Benitez brothers, working through their Miami-area HIV infusion clinics, are accused of submitting fraudulent claims to Medicare totaling about $110 million. OIG alleges that the services for which the brothers billed were medically unnecessary or never administered.

  • Leonard Nwafor — Mr. Nwafor and his co-conspirators billed Medicare for $1.1 million and collected $525,000 in fraudulent claims for durable medical equipment, including motorized wheelchairs, scooters and hospital beds for beneficiaries. This investigation was led by the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, including OIG investigators, which was created to identify and prosecute fraudulent DME companies and laboratories in the Greater Los Angeles area.

  • Susan Bendigo — Ms. Bendigo is accused of billing Medi-Cal, California's Medicaid program, for $17.1 million, $10 million of which she actually collected. Working as director of nursing for a company providing nurses for home health agencies, she is said to have sent unlicensed nurses to treat Medi-Cal patients, though she knew Medi-Cal required licensed nurses to perform this work.

Other healthcare fugitives featured on the list include Steven Moos, a former Oregon physician who was recently captured at Dulles International Airport.

Read the news release about the 10 most-wanted healthcare fraudsters (pdf).

Read other coverage about healthcare fraud:

- Actavis to Pay $170M for Reporting False Prices to Medicaid

- Texas Rheumatologist Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison for Fraud, Must Forfeit $43M in Cash

- CareSource Agrees to Pay $26M to Settle False Claims Allegations

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