MIAMI – Three Miami brothers top the list of the nation's most wanted health care fugitives.
It's the first time such a list has been released by Department of Health and Human Services inspector general officials. Officials say the top 10 suspects have cost taxpayers more than $124 million.
Authorities say the Miami brothers, Carlos, Luis, and Jose Benitez, set up bogus clinics and charged Medicare $119 million for costly HIV drugs that patients never received. Authorities say they bought hotels, helicopters and boats before fleeing to Cuba.
Officials hope the list, which includes a website with suspects' photos, will drive callers to the tip hotline. Taxpayers absorb the roughly $60 to $90 billion Medicare fraud costs each year.
__
Online: http://oig.hhs.gov/fugitives
The hottest stories ripped from the headlines, from crime to courts, legal and scandal.
