U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced Thursday 400 medical professionals across the country have been charged for $1.3 billion in health care fraud.
One of those cases from Delray Beach was so outrageous, Sessions singled it out during his press conference.
“One fake rehab facility for drug addicts in Palm Beach is alleged to have recruited addicts with gift cards, visits to strip clubs, and even drugs-enabling the company to bill for over $58 million in false treatments and tests,” Session said.
The case is in reference is that of 30-year old Eric Snyder, who owned several facilities in Delray Beach including Real Life Recovery and Halfway There.
The FBI said he bribed would-be patients with airline tickets and trips to strip clubs, then used those patients to file false insurance claims.
Snyder was arrested on Tuesday for fraud but the federal government has been building a case against him for years.
In 2014 the FBI raided his facilities.
Snyder, a recovering addict himself, moved to Palm Beach County and opened treatment facilities. Soon after he posted pictures of himself holding stacks of money and driving expensive cars.
Acting FBI director Andrew McCabe said Thursday that is exactly the types of health care professionals they’re going after.
"This week we arrested once trusted doctors, pharmacists, and other medical professionals who were corrupted by greed,” McCabe said. “These people inflicted a special kind of damage. They not only defrauded Medicare, Medicaid and Tricare out of many millions of taxpayer dollars, they preyed on the vulnerable, distributing powerful opioids to people they knew were hooked on them."
Aronberg said he is glad to know the federal government is committed to fight the epidemic.
"I'm encouraged by their strong response today with so many indictments and arrests across the country,” Aronberg said.
"We can't do it alone in Palm Beach County. We have a strong local response to it but we do need our federal partners."