Massive Medical Fraud Case of Dr. Dinh

Rare Medical Fraud Case: Dr. Anthony Hao Dinh Charged with $150 Million Fraud

It is truly rare to see a medical fraud case involving amounts exceeding $10-20 million. Dr. Anthony Hao Dinh has been charged with over $150 million in unlawfully received monies from COVID-19 treatments that were either not rendered or billed to the government despite reimbursement from private insurance.

No Deal, Then Charges Increase

In late 2023, a federal grand jury charged Dr. Dinh with defrauding the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) COVID-19 Uninsured Program. This case has been on the docket since April 10, and its late filing indicates that settlement negotiations failed. As is often the case, the initial criminal complaint had fewer charges than the later federal healthcare fraud indictment. This is a common danger in medical fraud cases.

The indictment by the grand jury added money laundering charges and allegations of other schemes to defraud pandemic relief programs. Additionally, unrelated to settlement negotiations, the indictment charged Dr. Dinh with obstructing the government’s investigation into improper healthcare billing.

The Attorney’s Dilemma in Federal Cases

Defense attorneys face a challenging position in federal cases. While it’s crucial not to sell out a client by accepting the first offer, the period between the initial complaint and the indictment is often the “golden” era for real negotiation. Once the indictment is filed, negotiations shift to motions, evidentiary strength, and the government’s ability to present strong witnesses. This type of negotiation is the bread and butter of top criminal defense attorneys, but for clients, it feels like high-stakes poker with their lives at stake.

Whether you retain our office or another top federal defense attorney, understand that when we push you to seriously consider early offers, it’s not a sign of weakness. We recognize the human tendency to want to fight versus the reality of how challenging these battles can be for the client.

The Basic Fraud Allegations

The basic case against Dr. Anthony Hao Dinh and his co-defendants, including his sister Hanna (“Hang”) Trinh Dinh, involves billing $250 million in claims for the treatment of patients who were insured, for services not rendered, or for services that were not medically necessary. The indictment states: “As a result of these false and fraudulent claims, HRSA made payments to defendant Dinh, through [his medical] practices, in the approximate amount of $150 million.”

Penalties Up to 20 Years in Prison

The penalties are severe. Dr. Dinh could face up to 20 years in prison for wire fraud and three counts of money laundering, up to 10 years for two additional money laundering charges, and up to 20 years for obstruction of justice for allegedly submitting false patient records in response to a grand jury subpoena.

Without knowing the investigation details and negotiations, we cannot speculate on why the case proceeded to indictment. Dr. Dinh’s sister has pled guilty. Generally, massive fraud cases with significant dollar losses expose defendants to substantial penalties, including financial restitution and prison time. Federal financial crimes often start with relatively low potential sentences, but these can escalate dramatically as the dollar loss amount increases. The $150 million involved in Dr. Dinh’s case strongly indicates he is potentially facing the high end of the sentencing range.

On February 12, 2024, in U.S. District Court, Central District of California, Dr. Dinh was sentenced for conspiracy to commit wire fraud. He received 20 months in prison, followed by 3 years of probation, with 7 months to be served as home confinement. Dr. Dinh must serve 85% of his prison time, though this can be reduced for various reasons during his custody.

Task Forces Investigating Medical Fraud

There has been a major increase in the United States government's focus on medical fraud.  That focus is broadening so that individual cases such as this case against Dr. Dinh will be just the tip of the iceberg.  Larger institutional monopolies will be targeted.  The formation of the Attorney General's Task Force on Health Care Monopolies and Collusion will look at larger scale collusive practices but may also sweep up the individual practitioners in these investigations.  However, this will likely lead to more cooperation agreements where people such as Dr. Dinh are offered cooperation agreements (turning informant essentially) in order to target large scale corporate fraud.

Federal Sentencing Guidelines for Medicare Fraud

Medicare fraud is a serious offense under federal law, and the penalties can be severe. Here are the key aspects of the federal sentencing guidelines for Medicare fraud:

Imprisonment

• Up to 10 Years: Medicare fraud is punishable by imprisonment for up to 10 years per count
• Aggravating Factors: If the fraud results in serious bodily injury, the sentence can be increased to up to 20 years. If the fraud results in death, the sentence can be life imprisonment².

Fines

• Criminal Fines: Offenders can face criminal fines of up to $250,000 per count³.

Restitution and Forfeiture

• Restitution: Offenders are typically required to pay restitution to the victims of the fraud, which includes reimbursing the Medicare program for the amount defrauded
• Asset Forfeiture: Offenders may also be subject to asset forfeiture, where the government can seize assets obtained through fraudulent activities

Supervised Release and Probation

• Supervised Release: After serving a prison sentence, offenders may be placed under supervised release for a specified period.

• Probation: In some cases, offenders may be sentenced to probation instead of imprisonment, depending on the severity of the offense and other factors

Daniel Horowitz: Expert Criminal Defense Attorney

Daniel Horowitz is a renowned specialist in criminal defense. He is recognized as a Top 100 Trial Lawyer, a Superlawyer, and holds an AVVO 10 rating. Daniel is nationally acclaimed for his work on high-profile cases, including the federal court defense of Ukraine Prime Minister Pavel Lazarenko.

 To learn more about our Healthcare Fraud Defense go to our Healthcare Fraud webpage.