U.S. Attorney's Office Participates In Record-Setting National Health Care Fraud Takedown

LAS VEGAS – Today, United States Attorney Sigal Chattah announced criminal charges against two defendants in the District of Nevada in connection with the Justice Department’s 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.

“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 alleged, the defendants – a registered nurse and a nurse practitioner – applied medically unnecessary allografts and received millions in illegal kickbacks from the fraudulent claims to Medicare and other health care benefit programs,” said United States Attorney Chattah for the District of Nevada. “Together with the FBI and the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, we will pursue and hold criminals accountable for their involvement in health care fraud schemes.”

According to court documents, the following individuals were charged in the District of Nevada:

• Paulino Gonzalez, 40, of Las Vegas, Nevada, was charged by information with conspiracy to defraud the United States and pay and receive kickbacks for participating in a $94 million scheme to order, recommend, and apply amniotic wound allografts in return for illegal kickbacks. As alleged in the information, Gonzalez, a registered nurse, received approximately $7,391,584 in illegal kickbacks from an allograft distributor in exchange for recommending the purchasing and ordering of certain allografts billed to Medicare. A wound care company paid Gonzalez to apply allografts, some of which were medically unnecessary, to Medicare beneficiaries. Between October 2021 and April 2024, the wound care company billed Medicare over $94 million for allografts applied by Gonzalez and others. Medicare paid over $54 million based on those false and fraudulent claims. The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Monica Cooper of the Texas Strike Force and Shane Butland of the National Rapid Response Strike Force, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica Oliva of the District of Nevada.
• Mary Huntly, 67, of Las Vegas, Nevada, was charged by information with conspiracy to defraud the United States and pay and receive health care kickbacks for participating in a scheme to receive illegal kickbacks in exchange for purchasing and ordering amniotic wound allografts billed to Medicare. As alleged in the information, Huntly, a nurse practitioner, applied medically unnecessary allografts to Medicare beneficiaries that were procured through illegal kickbacks and bribes. From September 2022 through April 2024, Huntly’s wound care company fraudulently billed Medicare approximately $14,333,550, and Medicare paid approximately $9,105,563 based on those claims. The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Monica Cooper of the Texas Strike Force and Shane Butland of the National Rapid Response Strike Force, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica Oliva of the District of Nevada.

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.

“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.”

“Today's unprecedented enforcement action demonstrates that CMS and our federal partners are united in our mission to protect the integrity of Medicare and Medicaid by crushing waste, fraud, and abuse," said CMS Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz. "Every dollar we prevent from going to fraudsters is a dollar that stays in the system to serve legitimate beneficiaries. Through advanced data analytics, real-time monitoring, and swift administrative action, CMS is leading the fight to protect Medicare, Medicaid, and the trust Americans place in these vital programs. We're not waiting for fraud to happen—we're stopping it before it starts."

The Fraud Section leads the Criminal Division’s efforts to combat health care fraud through the Health Care Fraud Strike Forces. Prior to the charges announced as part of today’s nationwide Takedown and since its inception in March 2007, the Health Care Fraud Strike Force, which operates in 27 districts, charged more than 5,400 defendants who collectively billed Medicare, Medicaid, and private health insurers more than $27 billion.

The following materials related to today’s announcement are available on the Health Care Fraud Unit’s website through these links:

•  Graphics and Resources

•  Case Descriptions

•  Court Documents

An information is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

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