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Unsealed Indictment Details Nearly $900 Million COVID-19 Testing Fraud by Ex-Loretto Executive

Prosecutors describe a scheme in which stolen patient records fueled false federal claims for unperformed COVID-19 tests.

Dr. Anosh Ahmed, chief operating officer, at Loretto Hospital on April 30, 2020 during the coronavirus pandemic. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)
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Overview

  • The 48-page indictment accuses former Loretto COO and CFO Anosh Ahmed and three associates of using sham labs to orchestrate the fraud.
  • From April 2021 to June 2022, the conspirators submitted about 1.36 million bogus test claims through O’Hare Clinical Lab and roughly 466,000 additional claims via Texas facilities.
  • They sought nearly $895 million in federal reimbursements under the Health Resources and Services Administration and received over $293 million before regulators halted payments.
  • Ahmed allegedly obtained personal identifiers from more than 150,000 Loretto Hospital patients to fabricate orders for uninsured individuals.
  • Ahmed remains at large in Dubai while Mohamed Sirajudeen and two co-defendants have been arrested in Houston or are set to surrender.