The U.S. Justice Department announced last week hundreds of people have been charged with the theft of more than $830 million in COVID-19 emergency aid, and Maryland was one of the states leading that nationwide investigation.
The wrongdoers were identified and prosecuted with the help of multiagency strike forces operating out of U.S. attorney’s offices in Florida, California and Maryland.
According to a federal indictment, between 2020 and 2021, Dr. Ron Elfenbein set up COVID-19 testing sites in Anne Arundel and Prince George's counties, but instead of charging patients for a drive-thru COVID-19 test, he was charging for an in-office visit, defrauding insurance companies of millions of dollars.
“This case involved COVID-testing sites and fraudulent claims through Medicare,” Maryland U.S. Attorney Erek Barron said.
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The investigation and prosecution of Elfenbein was part of the Justice Department’s three-month, multiagency sweep resulting in 718 enforcement actions with charges against 371 defendants related to more than $836 million in alleged COVID-19 fraud nationwide.
In Maryland alone, more than 20 defendants have been charged with various offenses that cost taxpayers an estimated $40 million, according to the U.S. attorney. There are also 19 active civil fraud cases with 19 defendants accused of a stealing a combined $30 million in relief.
“A lot of it either originated in Maryland or in some way is connected or related to or flowed through our state,” Barron said.
Investigations
Investigations by the News4 I-Team
The fraud was widespread, impacting almost every program the government offered from personal protective equipment loans to unemployment insurance.
The stolen money is being recovered through court-ordered restitutions and forfeitures.
At $15 million, Elfenbein stole the largest amount of COVID-19 relief in Maryland, according to the U.S. attorney’s office. He was convicted of five counts of healthcare fraud in early August and faces a maximum sentence of 50 years in federal prison.
“Those who would take advantage of all of us at that critical and vulnerable time in our lives need to be held accountable,” Barron said.
Elfenbein is appealing his conviction and asking for a new trial. News4 reached out to an attorney for Elfenbein but has not yet heard back.
The U.S. attorney's office says anyone who received stolen COVID-19 funds or participated in a scam to defraud the government should turn themselves in before authorities find them.
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