LA County alone accounts for estimated $3.5 billion in fraudulent hospice claims
Linda Henry, 71, was a few years into retirement and felt in good health, visiting her doctor in Southern California only for the occasional checkup. So it came as a shock when a Medicare worker told her in 2024 that the system had enrolled her in hospice — specialized end-of-life care usually provided to people with six months or less to live — and listed a diagnosis of heart failure.
Henry was enrolled in hospice through fraudulent means, part of a pattern of fraud in the hospice industry that has been especially severe in California. According to the Associated Press, scammers exploited gaps in oversight of the industry in the state.
California has been a focus of the Trump administration’s fraud-prevention efforts in federally funded health programs. More than 1,000 California hospices have been removed from Medicare since early 2025. Federal officials estimate Los Angeles County alone accounts for an estimated $3.5 billion in fraudulent Medicare hospice claims.