Attorney General Jeff Jackson Announces Health Care Fraud Criminal Charges in Two Cases as Part of USDOJ’s National Health Care Fraud Takedown

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, June 24, 2026
Contact: [email protected]
919-538-2809

RALEIGH - Attorney General Jeff Jackson announced criminal charges today in two health care fraud cases as part of the U.S. Department of Justice's National Health Care Fraud Takedown. The national effort has resulted in charges against 455 defendants and involves more than $6.5 billion in alleged fraud.

"Our Medicaid Investigations Division is one of the best in the country, and their innovative efforts to uncover fraud are helping us find fraud and prosecute criminals," said Attorney General Jeff Jackson. "Together with our state and federal partners, we're going to protect taxpayer dollars so they can go where they're intended - to taxpayers' health care."

Both cases began through MID's data mining efforts - MID is a nationwide leader in reviewing Medicaid claims data to identify billing irregularities and uncover fraud. North Carolina was one of the first states to get permission from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to investigate potential fraud through data mining Medicaid claims.  MID's data mining also led to the division's largest criminal conviction so far this year, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina, against five defendants who were sentenced to between two and six years in prison each and ordered to pay $12.7 million in restitution.

Since MID's data mining efforts began in 2017, they have led to 68 investigations, six criminal convictions with more than $27 million in ordered restitution, and 18 civil False Claims Act settlements with more than $10 million in ordered restitution and penalties.

In the first MID case included in the National Health Care Fraud Takedown, Ronnie Lorenzo Robinson, of Charlotte, was charged federally by U.S. Attorney Russ Ferguson in the Western District of North Carolina with health care fraud, making false statements relating to health care matters, aggravated identity theft, and billing for services not rendered. Robinson allegedly submitted approximately $735,000 in false claims to the Medicaid program and received about $440,000 in payments from the program.

Robinson owns The Fisher of Men Project, LLC, a registered behavioral and mental health service provider. He allegedly took personal identifying information for both medical providers and Medicaid recipients and used that information to submit the false Medicaid claims. Additionally, Robinson allegedly hid his ownership of the company in filings with N.C. Medicaid because he already had a previous federal conviction for health care fraud. Instead, he pretended another person was the actual company owner.

"Part of the reason healthcare costs are out of control is because of fraud like this," said U.S. Attorney Russ Ferguson. "Every dollar spent on healthcare should go toward healthcare-not lining the pockets of criminals. We will work night and day to uncover fraud like this and recover the money that is needlessly being paid in both taxes and healthcare costs."

The FBI, the North Carolina Department of Justice's Medicaid Investigations Division, and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of North Carolina are investigating and prosecuting the case.

In the second MID case that was included in the National Health Care Fraud Takedown, Deborah Lanell White was charged federally by U.S. Attorney Dan Bishop in the Middle District of North Carolina with health care fraud. White owns Reginald Center of Turn Around. White allegedly billed the North Carolina Medicaid programs for more than 20,000 fraudulent drug tests between 2020 and 2025, resulting in a loss of $2.8 million taxpayer dollars.

The HHS Office of the Inspector General, the Internal Revenue Service, the U.S. Postal Service, North Carolina's Medicaid Investigations Division, and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of North Carolina investigated and are prosecuting the case.

A charge is merely an accusation, and these defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

About the Medicaid Investigations Division (MID)

The Attorney General's MID investigates Medicaid fraud by health care companies and providers, as well as patient abuse and neglect in facilities that are funded by Medicaid. To date, the MID has recovered more than $1.2 billion in restitution and penalties for North Carolina. MID has won more than $41 million in civil penalties since 2012 that go to fund North Carolina's public schools.

MID receives 75 percent of its funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under a grant award totaling $8,561,152 for Federal fiscal year (FY) 2026. The remaining 25 percent, totaling $2,852,714, is funded by the State of North Carolina.

To report Medicaid fraud in North Carolina, call the North Carolina Medicaid Investigations Division at 919-881-2320, or report Medicaid provider fraud online here or patient abuse online here.

The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services and the county Departments of Social Services are the agencies responsible for Medicaid recipient eligibility fraud. You can report Medicaid recipient eligibility fraud here.

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