BOCA RATON, FL (BocaNewsNow.com) (Copyright © 2025 MetroDesk Media, LLC) — A Boca Raton man is among nearly 40 people charged by the United States Department of Justice in a healthcare fraud crackdown. The charges, announced Thursday, also include two defendants from North Broward County. The following is the announcement provided to BocaNewsNow.com by the DOJ:
>> United States Attorney Hayden P. O’Byrne announced criminal charges against thirty-seven defendants in connection with alleged schemes to unlawfully distribute controlled substances and defraud federal health care programs, including Medicare and Medicaid. The charges were filed in federal court and are part of the Department of Justice’s 2025 National Health Care Fraud Takedown.
The Justice Department today announced the results of its 2025 National Health Care Fraud Takedown, which resulted in criminal charges against 324 defendants, including 96 doctors, nurse practitioners, pharmacists, and other licensed medical professionals, in 50 federal districts and 12 State Attorneys General’s Offices across the United States, for their alleged participation in various health care fraud schemes involving over $14.6 billion in intended loss. The Takedown involved federal and state law enforcement agencies across the country and represents an unprecedented effort to combat health care fraud schemes that exploit patients and taxpayers.
Demonstrating the significant return on investment that results from health care fraud enforcement efforts, the government seized over $245 million in cash, luxury vehicles, cryptocurrency, and other assets as part of the coordinated enforcement efforts. As part of the whole-of-government approach to combating health care fraud announced today, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) also announced that it successfully prevented over $4 billion from being paid in response to false and fraudulent claims and that it suspended or revoked the billing privileges of 205 providers in the months leading up to the Takedown. Civil charges against 20 defendants for $14.2 million in alleged fraud, as well as civil settlements with 106 defendants totaling $34.3 million, were also announced as part of the Takedown.
Today’s Takedown was led and coordinated by the Health Care Fraud Unit of the Department of Justice Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and its core partners from U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). The cases were investigated by agents from HHS-OIG, FBI, DEA, and other federal and state law enforcement agencies. The cases are being prosecuted by Health Care Fraud Strike Force teams from the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section, 50 U.S. Attorneys’ Offices nationwide, and 12 State Attorneys General Offices.
“This record-setting Health Care Fraud Takedown delivers justice to criminal actors who prey upon our most vulnerable citizens and steal from hardworking American taxpayers,” said Attorney General Pamela Bondi. “Make no mistake – this administration will not tolerate criminals who line their pockets with taxpayer dollars while endangering the health and safety of our communities.”
“As part of making healthcare accessible and affordable to all Americans, HHS will aggressively work with our law enforcement partners to eliminate the pervasive health care fraud that bedeviled this agency under the former administration and drove up costs,” said Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. of the Department of Health and Human Services.
“The Criminal Division is intensely committed to rooting out health care fraud schemes and prosecuting the criminals who perpetrate them because these schemes: (1) often result in physical patient harm through medically unnecessary treatments or failure to provide the correct treatments; (2) contribute to our nationwide opioid epidemic and exacerbate controlled substance addiction; and (3) do all of that while stealing money hardworking Americans contribute to pay for the care of their elders and other vulnerable citizens,” said Matthew R. Galeotti, Head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “The Division’s Health Care Fraud Unit and U.S. Attorneys’ Offices stand united with our law enforcement partners in this fight, and we will continue to use every tool at our disposal to protect the integrity of our health care programs for the American people.”
“The scale of today’s Takedown is unprecedented, and so is the harm we’re confronting. Individuals who attempt to steal from the federal health care system and put vulnerable patients at risk will be held accountable,” said Acting Inspector General Juliet T. Hodgkins of HHS-OIG. “Our agents at HHS-OIG work relentlessly to detect, investigate, and dismantle these fraud schemes. We are proud to stand with our law enforcement partners in protecting taxpayer dollars and safeguarding patient care.”
“Health care fraud drains critical resources from programs intended to help people who truly need medical care,” said FBI Director Kash Patel. “Today’s announcement demonstrates our commitment to pursuing those who exploit the system for personal gain. With more than $13 billion in fraud uncovered, this is the largest takedown for this initiative to date. Together, the FBI and our law enforcement partners will continue to hold those accountable who steal from the American people and undermine our health care systems.”
In United States v. John R. Robinson Jr., Case No. 25-80104-CR-Rosenberg, John R. Robinson Jr., 35, of Boca Raton, Florida, was charged by information with conspiracy to commit health care fraud and conspiracy to solicit and receive health care kickbacks in connection with a scheme to bill Medicare for medically unnecessary genetic testing. As alleged in the information, Robinson owned a call center through which he sold doctors’ orders for genetic tests to laboratories by running deceptive telemarketing campaigns to get the Medicare beneficiaries to agree to the tests. His call center then would “doctor chase” the beneficiaries’ physicians to sign orders for the tests by sending them faxes containing false, fraudulent, and misleading representations designed to induce them into ordering the tests. The laboratories to which he sold the orders billed approximately $62 million to Medicare, of which about $44 million was paid. HHS-OIG and FBI Miami investigated the case. The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Reginald Cuyler Jr. and Aisha Schafer Hylton of the Florida Strike Force. Assistant U.S. Attorney Marx Calderon of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida is handling asset forfeiture.
In United States v. Jorge Luis Almansa, et al., Case No. 25-60142-CR-Dimitrouleas, Jorge Luis Almansa, 53, and Christian “Chris” Cruz, 44, both of Pompano Beach, Florida, were charged by indictment with conspiracy to commit health care and wire fraud and health care fraud for submitting false and fraudulent claims to Medicare in the approximate amount of $11,417,462 for the provision of durable medical equipment to Medicare beneficiaries. As a result, Medicare paid approximately $3,712,345, which Almansa and Cruz then distributed to themselves and their co-conspirators. The indictment alleges that Almansa and Cruz, through a company called Brace Yourself, paid marketing companies for referrals of Medicare beneficiaries for medically unnecessary durable medical equipment (“DME”). The marketers used telemedicine companies to obtain doctors’ orders prescribing DME to beneficiaries who had never been seen by the prescribing doctor, which Brace Yourself would then use to bill Medicare. In some instances, the marketers generated doctors’ orders that included the electronic signature of a beneficiary’s own doctor without that doctor’s permission or authorization. HHS-OIG and FBI Miami investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Will J. Rosenzweig is prosecuting it. Assistant U.S. Attorney Sandra Demirci is handling asset forfeiture.
U.S. Attorney Hayden P. O’Byrne for the Southern District of Florida, acting Special Agent in Charge Jesus Barranco of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), Miami Regional Office, and Special Agent in Charge Brett D. Skiles of the FBI, Miami Field Office made the announcement.
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida, worked with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), FBI Miami, and the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit of the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration to investigate and prosecute these cases filed during the enforcement period.
A complaint, information, or indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
