Health care fraud costs consumers $283 at a time and Medicare billions
In 2024 US consumers filed 78,763 health care fraud reports with the FTC, losing about $80 million with a median of $283 each. The same year's federal takedown alleged $14.6 billion. Both numbers are real and they describe two different crimes wearing one name — which is why advice written for one is useless against the other.
- Year
- 2024
- Where
- United States
- Outcome
- Ongoing
- Reported loss
- $80.0 million
- Victims
- 78,763
- Schemes
- Medicare and health insurance scams
- Last reviewed
- 2026-09-06
The facts, as recorded
- US consumers filed 78,763 Health Care fraud reports with the FTC in 2024, with about $80 million in reported losses and a median loss of $283.
- Reports of fraud involving medical insurance and discount plans rose from 8,030 in 2022 to 8,996 in 2023 and 10,147 in 2024 — a 26% increase in two years.
- Reports about medical treatments and cures rose from 46,564 in 2022 to 50,361 in 2024.
- Health care billing complaints fell over the same period, from 1,837 in 2022 to 1,500 in 2024.
- The Justice Department's June 2025 takedown alleged over $14.6 billion in health care fraud across 324 defendants — roughly 180 times the consumer-reported annual loss.
- The median consumer loss of $283 is among the smallest in the FTC's data, against $1,000 for text-initiated fraud and $1,500 for phone-initiated fraud.
Why this case matters
Two numbers, both accurate, one year apart, describing something called health care fraud.
$80 million, reported by 78,763 American consumers, at a median of $283 each.
$14.6 billion, alleged by the Justice Department against 324 defendants.
They are not the same crime, and confusing them makes both harder to think about.
Two crimes, one label
The federal number is a billing crime. Somebody with access to a Medicare number submits claims for equipment, tests or services that were not needed or never happened. The victim is the programme. The beneficiary is not out of pocket and frequently never finds out.
The consumer number is a selling crime. Somebody sells a fake insurance plan, a discount card, a sham treatment, or takes a payment to “process” a card that is free. The victim is the person, and the amount is what a person can be persuaded to pay in one conversation — a median of $283.
The link between them is that the selling crime is often the collection stage of the billing crime. A call that gets a Medicare number takes nothing; what it takes is the credential that gets billed for years afterwards.
What the reports are doing
| Category | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Medical insurance and discount plans | 8,030 | 8,996 | 10,147 |
| Medical treatments and cures | 46,564 | 47,475 | 50,361 |
| Health care billing | 1,837 | 1,931 | 1,500 |
Fake plans and discount cards are up 26% in two years. Treatment and cure claims are up steadily. Billing complaints are the only line falling — and that is the category a beneficiary would file if they had noticed a fraudulent claim on their own account.
Which is the point. Consumers report what they were sold, because they experienced it. They do not report what was billed in their name, because nothing about it reaches them.
Why $283 is the interesting number
It is among the smallest medians in the FTC’s data — against $1,000 for fraud that starts with a text and $1,500 for fraud that starts with a phone call.
Small enough that hardly anyone pursues it. Small enough that it feels foolish to report. And small enough that the loss the person notices is not the loss that matters — which, in this category, is a number they gave away.
Sources
- Consumer Sentinel Network Data Book 2024. US Federal Trade Commission. Accessed 2026-09-06. Supports: The 78,763 Health Care reports, the $80m in losses, the $283 median, and the report counts for medical insurance and discount plans, medical treatments and cures, and health care billing for 2022–2024.
- National Health Care Fraud Takedown Results in 324 Defendants Charged in Connection with Over $14.6 Billion in Alleged Fraud. US Department of Justice. Accessed 2026-09-06. Supports: The $14.6 billion in alleged fraud used for comparison.
- This Medicare Open Enrollment season, learn how to protect yourself from scams. US Federal Trade Commission, Consumer Advice. Accessed 2026-09-06. Supports: The consumer-facing pretexts these reports describe.