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Since March 2007, federal investigators have uncovered more than $5 billion in Medicare fraud, but they suspect that might just be the tip of the iceberg. As the prolific bank robber Willie Sutton reportedly said of robbing banks - because that's where the money is - health care fraud has become a huge problem throughout the country. According to the U.S. De­part­ment of Justice, Geor­gia ranks 12th in investigations, seventh in the number of fraud cases and sixth in total recovered - almost $98.95 million in 2012. In the Southern District of Georgia, more than $27 million in restitution was collected last year in one of the country's largest Medicare fraud prosecutions in 2005 - The Bio-Med Plus in Savannah. In Augus­ta, optometrist Jeffrey Spon­sel­ler was sentenced Jan. 9 to 33 months in prison and ordered to pay $441,000 in restitution for bilking Medicare. Federal investigations into Medicare fraud have exploded in response to the problem, said David Stewart, who recently left the U.S. attorney's office where one of his duties was health care fraud coordinator. Medicare fraud affects everyone because Medicare has become the primary health care coverage for most Amer­i­cans when they turn 65, said Ken­neth Crowder, who recently left the U.S. attorney's office and joined Stewart in private practice. When Medicare coverage started in 1966, 19.1 million were enrolled. In 2013, that number was 43.5 million, according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. With the last of the baby boomer generation turning 50 this year and increased health insurance coverage through the Affordable Care Act, Stew­art and Crowder said fraud is expected to expand. Going after health care fraud holds the promise of getting money back for the government, Stewart said, which is another reason the Jus­tice Department has set that as a top goal. The attack on those defrauding Medicare and military health care provider TriCare occurs in crimina

Kongressen debatter utvide langsiktige dagpenger for noen 1,3 millioner amerikanere, tapt i oppvarmet retorikken er noen veldig viktige tall for skattebetalere. Stat og føderale arbeidsledighet forsikring systemet har hjulpet mange mennesker i nød, men det er også tillatt noen kvalifisert mottakere svikaktig hjelpe seg selv til lommebøker av bedrifter og skattebetalere. USA registrert noen $7,7 milliarder dollar i feil arbeidsledighet forsikring betalinger i 2013, ifølge US Department of Labor. Anslått urettmessig betaling går så høyt som 18.16 prosent i Nebraska. Louisiana postet den høyeste beregnede svindel satsen i landet i fjor, på mer enn 7 prosent. I Wisconsin: * Anslått urettmessig betaling utgjorde$ 92,644,556, gjennom 30 juni. Systemet hadde en anslått uriktig betalingen rate på 10.48 prosent, ifølge Labor Department. Prisen er summen av overbetaling rate og underbetaling rente, trekke overbetalinger gjenopprettet, for arbeidsledighet forsikring program for rapporteringsperioden. Dataene krever urettmessig betaling informasjon Act. * Majoriteten av urettmessig betaling involverer arbeid søk spørsmål - manglende evne til å validere at et individ har møtt Statens arbeidskrav søk- og inntekter foregående år, der en person fortsetter å kreve og få fordeler etter returnerer arbeide. * Den estimerte arbeidsledigheten forsikring svindel i perioden var 2,1 prosent. * Staten bestemt nesten 5600 fordringshavere mottatt falske føderale Emergency arbeidsledighetstrygd overbetalinger totalt $10.5 millioner mellom 1 januar 2013 og 30 november 2013. For bestemmelse er potensielle ankes, ifølge John Dipko, talsmann for staten avdelingen av arbeidsstyrke utvikling.

WASHINGTON - The numbers of affected consumers are as yet impossible to predict, but mortgage-credit experts warn that the recent massive data breaches at Target, Neiman Marcus and other retailers could have significant side effects on some real-estate transactions in the coming months, as damaged credit files depress scores and jeopardize loan applications and home sales. The Target breach alone could touch as many as 70 million credit- and debit-card customers, according to the company. Neiman Marcus says data on 1.1 million of its customers may be vulnerable to fraud. So what are the potential blowbacks on home sales and mortgage applications? Start with the basics. Identity theft, if not corrected quickly, can make a mess of anyone's credit-bureau files. Though victims may not be liable for the unauthorized debts racked up, their credit reports - and in turn their credit scores - can be damaged for weeks or months. Listen to Terry Clemans, executive director of the National Consumer Reporting Association, the primary trade group that represents independent credit-reporting companies serving the mortgage industry.