Former NFL Player Convicted in $197 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme

A federal jury in the Middle District of Florida has convicted former NFL player Joel Rufus French for his role in a sprawling healthcare fraud scheme that defrauded Medicare and the Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs (CHAMPVA) of nearly $200 million. The case represents one of the more egregious examples of patient exploitation seen in recent US healthcare fraud prosecutions and underscores persistent weaknesses in telemedicine, durable medical equipment supply chains and beneficiary data protection.

According to evidence presented at trial, French operated a marketing-led fraud model that relied on overseas call centres to harvest personal and health insurance data from elderly Americans. Many victims were suffering from Alzheimer’s disease or dementia. Call recordings were manipulated to fabricate consent, while medically unnecessary orthotic braces were ordered for patients who neither wanted nor required them. In some cases, claims were submitted for deceased beneficiaries and amputees for limbs they did not have.

The scheme was enabled by sham telemedicine companies that provided signed doctors’ orders without any meaningful clinical interaction. French then sold these fraudulent orders to marketers and medical supply companies, while simultaneously billing Medicare and CHAMPVA through eight durable medical equipment suppliers he secretly owned and controlled. False documentation was used to conceal his involvement from Medicare, allowing claims to flow unchecked through the system.

From a financial crime perspective, the case illustrates how healthcare fraud increasingly mirrors organised economic crime models. The use of layered corporate structures, overseas operations, cash withdrawals and interstate transport of funds points to deliberate efforts to evade detection. French was also convicted of conspiracy to commit money laundering and conspiracy to offer, pay, solicit and receive kickbacks, reflecting the breadth of criminal conduct underpinning the fraud.

Regulators and law enforcement agencies were unequivocal in their response. The Department of Justice emphasised the harm caused to taxpayer-funded programmes and the targeting of vulnerable populations, including seniors and veterans’ families. Investigative agencies including the FBI, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS OIG) and the Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General highlighted the importance of inter-agency cooperation in dismantling complex healthcare fraud networks.

The conviction carries significant custodial exposure. French faces up to 20 years’ imprisonment for conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud and wire fraud, up to 10 years for conspiracy to commit money laundering, and up to five years for conspiracy offences relating to defrauding the United States. Sentencing will be determined at a later date following consideration of the US Sentencing Guidelines.

Beyond the individual outcome, this case reinforces broader compliance lessons. Telemedicine arrangements, third-party marketing relationships and durable medical equipment suppliers remain high-risk vectors for fraud. For regulators, it demonstrates the continued reliance on post-event enforcement rather than real-time prevention. For financial institutions and healthcare payers, it highlights the importance of enhanced transaction monitoring, beneficiary verification and scrutiny of provider ownership structures.

The Health Care Fraud Strike Force Program, led by the Department of Justice Criminal Division’s Fraud Section, has now charged more than 6,200 defendants since 2007, involving over $45 billion in fraudulent billings. Yet cases like this suggest that systemic vulnerabilities persist, particularly where vulnerable populations, remote service delivery and fragmented oversight intersect.

As healthcare systems continue to digitise and outsource patient engagement, the French conviction serves as a stark reminder that fraud risk evolves alongside innovation, and that enforcement alone cannot substitute for robust preventative controls.

Read the press released here.