Tracking Fraud Related to the COVID-19 Pandemic
The combination of fear, loosened health care regulations, and unprecedented cash infusions into the economy create fertile ground for health care scams and fraud. Regulatory flexibilities and deficit spending are both reasonable responses to the COVID-19 crisis, but law enforcement and health regulators will have to be vigilant for the bad actors who are exploiting the COVID-19 emergency and defrauding consumers and payers.
From fake vaccines and cures to subpar personal protective equipment to hoarding and price gouging, indictments and arrests are occurring at an alarming rate. Any further efforts by the United States Congress to further stimulate the economy and address implications of the current public health crisis has the potential to open up additional avenues for fraudulent activity.
Meanwhile, the Trump administration has taken a number of steps to relax long-established regulatory requirements and processes in the interest of increasing the capacity of the health care system to address COVID-19 and allowing distressed providers to focus solely on patient care. This includes loosening of restrictions around the provision of medication-assisted treatment via telemedicine by the DEA. In so doing, unethical and fringe providers will have the opportunity to engage in wasteful and fraudulent activities in new ways. Where there’s money and demand, there are sure to be crooks.
Below we track COVID-related scammers and fraudsters who have been subject to federal or state law enforcement or regulatory actions. This page is accurate as of April 15, 2021. For more information, contact the authors below.
What types of charges is law enforcement bringing for COVID-19 fraud?
| Law Enforcement Actions | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Total Actions By Month | Charges | ||||||
| Hoarding | Price Gouging | Anti-Kickback | False Claims | Mail Fraud | Bank Fraud | Other | ||
| March | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| April | 27 | 3 | 10 | 0 | 13 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| May | 13 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| June | 20 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| July | 14 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| August | 24 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| September | 26 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| October | 17 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| November | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| December | 23 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| January | 14 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| February | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 6 |
| March | 22 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 16 |
| April | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 16 |
| Total | 246 | 6 | 18 | 2 | 66 | 15 | 14 | 43 |
Table is current as of April 15, 2021
What types of actions are U.S. regulators taking against individuals engaged in alleged COVID-19 fraud?
| Regulatory Actions | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Total Actions By Month | Type of Regulatory Action | Area of Interest | ||||||||||||
| Warning Letter | CMPs | CRL | Exclusion from Gov. Programs | SEC Charges | SEC Trading Suspension | Other | CBD | Herbal Treatment | Colloidal Silver | Robocall | COVID Equipment | COVID Tests | Other | ||
| February | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| March | 25 | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 5 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| April | 124 | 110 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 14 | 1 | 4 | 37 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 89 |
| May | 127 | 125 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 71 | 13 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 46 |
| June | 70 | 67 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 19 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 44 |
| July | 28 | 28 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 16 |
| August | 13 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 9 |
| September | 7 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 |
| October | 10 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 |
| November | 10 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 6 |
| December | 9 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| January | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| February | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| March | 13 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 2 |
| April | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Total | 453 | 430 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 19 | 1 | 16 | 167 | 32 | 15 | 14 | 21 | 230 |
Table is current as of April 15, 2021
How many actions have been taken to date?
| Combined Enforcement Count | |
|---|---|
| Month | Count |
| February | 2 |
| March | 30 |
| April | 151 |
| May | 140 |
| June | 90 |
| July | 42 |
| August | 37 |
| September | 33 |
| October | 27 |
| November | 20 |
| December | 32 |
| January | 20 |
| February | 16 |
| March | 35 |
| April | 24 |
| Total | 699 |
Table is current as of April 15, 2021
Who is taking action against alleged COVID-19 fraud?
| Enforcement Action | Count |
|---|---|
| Food and Drug Administration (FDA) | 55 |
| Joint FTC/Federal Communications Commission | 8 |
| Joint FTC/Small Business Administration | 8 |
| State Attorneys General | 10 |
| US Attorney's Office (USAO) | 236 |
| Joint FDA/FTC | 125 |
| Federal Trade Commission (FTC) | 235 |
| US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) | 23 |
| Total | 699 |
Table is current as of April 15, 2021