VIDEO – CRIMINALS –
April 9, 2026 – Bonta said the defendants collected money without providing a single legitimate hospice service. The law enforcement effort, called Operation Skip Trace, targeted ten locations in Southern California. CBS News has examined the business and financial records of every hospice currently operating in LA County, and applied the same indicators of potential fraud identified in a state audit. The CBS News analysis revealed that over 700 of the roughly 1,800 hospices in LA County, trigger multiple red flags for fraud as defined by the state.
On April 2, the U.S. Department of Justice announced that authorities arrested and federally charged eight people in connection with a health care and hospice fraud investigation. Acting U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli said the defendants, including three nurses, a chiropractor and a psychologist, were charged with defrauding the health care system out of more than $50 million.
Fraud in public services has become a thorny political issue as the Republican-led federal government focuses most attention on cases in Democratic states.
“We are upholding as a priority, making sure that taxpayer dollars are going to healthcare services for the Medi-Cal members who rely on them,” Sadwith said. “That requires partnership with the federal government. Right now, it is a challenging time between some states like California and our federal partners.”
