FBI Arrests 15 in $50 Million Southern California Hospice Fraud Crackdown

FBI arrests 15 in $50 million Southern California hospice fraud crackdown. Operation Never Say Die targets sham facilities billing Medicare for non-terminal patients.

FBI Arrests 15 in $50 Million Southern California Hospice Fraud Crackdown FBI arrests 15 in $50 million Southern California hospice fraud crackdown. Operation Never Say Die targets sham facilities billing Medicare for non-terminal patients. Aaron Rafferty April 03, 2026 Key Takeaways: The FBI arrested 8 of 15 defendants charged in Operation Never Say Die on April 2, targeting sham hospice facilities in Southern California that billed Medicare more than $50 million for non-terminal patients. Los Angeles County has nearly 1,800 hospices, roughly one-third of all hospices in the United States, with 700 flagging fraud indicators according to state auditors. CMS has revoked approvals for 220 hospices in California in the last 10 weeks, and HHS Secretary Dr. Oz announced plans to review every hospice in the state by year-end. The FBI arrested eight people on April 2 as part of Operation Never Say Die, a federal crackdown on hospice and healthcare fraud in Southern California. Fifteen defendants were charged across nine investigations for allegedly siphoning more than $50 million from Medicare by running sham hospice care facilities that enrolled patients who were not terminally ill. The defendants include three nurses, a chiropractor, and a psychologist. One defendant, a licensed vocational nurse from Anaheim, allegedly submitted more than $9.1 million in fraudulent claims and paid beneficiaries roughly $300 per month to pose as dying patients. Her facility had a non-death discharge rate of approximately 85%, nearly five times the national average. A psychologist and his wife in Covina allegedly used fraudulent hospice billings to cover mortgage payments, car payments, and international travel. The numbers behind the crackdown explain why the operation exists. Los Angeles Cou