U.S. Attorney seeks help of South Florida hospitals to fight coronavirus fraud
In an effort to stop fraud stemming from the coronavirus outbreak, U.S. Attorney Ariana Fajardo Orshan is reaching out to South Florida hospitals to provide information on anyone acquiring or selling medical supplies for the purpose of hoarding or price gouging.
“In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, our office is prioritizing the deterrence, investigation, and prosecution of wrongdoing related to the COVID-19 pandemic — including . . . hoarding and/or price-gouging with regard to critical medical supplies,” Fajardo Orshan wrote in a letter this week to area hospital executives.
In the letter, she asked for assistance “in identifying individuals and companies that may have acquired vital medical supplies in excess of what they would reasonably use, or for the purpose of charging exorbitant prices.”
Her office recently set up a task force led by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jon Juenger that aims to investigate and prosecute fraud anyone who illegally benefits from exploiting the coronavirus pandemic.
On March 20, Attorney General William Barr directed all 93 U.S. Attorneys nationwide to make fraud related to the COVID-19 disease a major priority.
The public is being asked to report any suspicious activity to the National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) hotline at 1-866-720-5721 or to the email address disaster@leo.gov.
This story was originally published April 15, 2020 at 12:40 PM.
