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The Justice Department announced a massive takedown of health care fraud and at the top of the list is a Pakistani’s $650 million fraud.
All this and Arizona didn’t even convene a Pakistan Day.
The Justice Department has charged a Pakistani national who allegedly orchestrated a $650 million fraud scheme that primarily targeted an Arizona Medicaid program offering addiction treatment and other services for Native Americans.
Court papers say the defendant, Farrukh Ali, conspired with at least 41 substance abuse clinics to bill the state for hundreds of millions of dollars for substance abuse services that were never provided, not provided as billed or were medically unnecessary. Many of the patients who were enrolled — but not given legitimate treatment — were recruited from the homeless population or Native American reservations, officials say.
Ali, who is not in U.S. custody and is believed to be in Pakistan, faces conspiracy, wire fraud and money laundering charges. He could not be reached for comment.
According to prosecutors, he owned and operated a company called ProMD Solutions LLC, which was organized in Arizona but based in Pakistan. The firm provided credentialing and enrolling, medical coding and billing services for medical practices, court papers say.
This is what happens when we outsource. You can have companies and individuals who never set foot in the U.S., but still make millions from our health care system with no accountability.
Ali personally received approximately $24.5 million of AHCCCS funds as a result of the scheme, and he used $2.9 million of the funds to purchase a home located on a golf estate in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
Will Pakistan extradite Ali? I can guess the answer. What about the UAE?
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