The United States government is looking for four Pakistani nationals accused of using a call centre in Pakistan to obtain US Medicare beneficiary information and submit $703 million in fraudulent claims.
At an exchange rate of Rs. 280 per dollar, the amount is equivalent to Rs. 196 billion. According to multiple local and international newspapers, the US Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General said the four suspects operated through a Pakistan-based call centre called Hello International Marketing Solutions.
Their names: Fizza Farid, Faizan Saleem, Shearyar Arif and Ruknuddin “Rick” Charolia.
The suspects obtained Medicare identification numbers through alleged theft and deception and used the information to submit false claims to Medicare and Medicare Advantage plans.
The claims allegedly involved COVID-19 test kits, durable medical equipment, and genetic tests that beneficiaries had not requested, did not medically need, or did not receive.
The call centre allegedly contacted Medicare beneficiaries to obtain consent for the products and services. In some cases involving COVID-19 test kits, consent was allegedly fabricated using artificial intelligence.
US authorities said all four suspects may currently be in Pakistan or the United Arab Emirates.
The American public has been advised to provide information that could help locate the suspects. The health department stressed that the allegations are not proof of guilt and that the accused are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
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