Tag: los angeles

CBS News Investigation Uncovers Massive Medicare Hospice Fraud In L.A. County

An investigation by CBS News has discovered massive Medicare fraud at more than 700 out of 1,800 licensed hospice providers in Los Angeles County

The scam utilizes stolen Medicare numbers to fraudulently enroll healthy seniors in hospice with fake terminal diagnoses, billing Medicare an average of $29,000 per patient without delivering care, to the tune of hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars.

About 31 percent of hospice and home health companies in the U.S. are registered in L.A. County but when investigators visited the addresses listed, they found no clinics, patients or healthcare workers.

Instead they found multiple red flags, including multiple hospices in one building, high rates of terminally ill patients later discharged alive, excessive billing, and staff shared across multiple companies.

The California state auditor had sounded the alarm three years ago, saying that Los Angeles County had seen the number of hospice companies increase more than six times the national average, relative to its elderly population.

Let’s put this in perspective.

The population of residents age 65 or over in California is estimated at 6.3 million while Florida estimates its population of 65+ residents at 4.9 million.

Public records show 2,279 Medicare-certified hospice organizations in California with just 208 such Medicare-certified organizations in Florida.

This raises serious questions as to why California would have more than 10 times the number of Medicare-certified hospice organizations than Florida when it has less than twice the population of 65+ residents.

According to CBS, in just one year, L.A. County hospices overbilled Medicare by $105 million, prompting the state to investigate and revoke the licenses of 280 hospices.

This latest revelation of potential Medicare fraud shows that the problem of scammers enriching themselves at taxpayer expense extends far beyond Minnesota, which has been under scrutiny for the past few months over the alleged theft of billions of taxpayer dollars via social services.

It also reveals the silver lining that a mainstream news organization is finally willing to do investigative reporting on suspected fraud rather than leaving the heavy lifting to citizen journalists like Nick Shirley, who blew the lid off taxpayer fraud in Minnesota and then turned his sights on California.

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LA awards $106M to nonprofit whose lawyers hinder city’s ability to clean up streets — and bill $1,025 an hour

Los Angeles just cut a whopping $106.6 million taxpayer check to a nonprofit law firm whose lawyers have spent years hindering the city’s ability to dismantle homeless camps and clean up city streets — with one attorney billing as much as $1,025 an hour for work tied to its activism.

The Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles (LAFLA) was awarded the largest share of an eye-popping $177 million tenant rights funding package approved at City Hall this week, despite opposition from the City Attorney.

Under the deal, Los Angeles will funnel $106,572,543.69 over the next three years to LAFLA for eviction defense services, even as attorneys connected to the organization have repeatedly filed lawsuits that blocked the city from enforcing municipal codes aimed at keeping sidewalks clear of encampments and neighborhoods safe.

But the money flowing to the group is far larger than that. City records show the Stay Housed LA eviction defense program, a city initiative administered by LAFLA through a network of partner organizations, had already grown to a maximum contract value of about $90.8 million through a series of amendments approved by the City Council.

Put together, the contracts push the pipeline of taxpayer funding tied to the nonprofit to about $197 million. That number jumps off the page when compared to the organization’s own finances.

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We visited “ground zero” for hospice fraud: Los Angeles, California

At age 69, Lynn Ianni is a pickleball whiz, zipping from dinks to drives energetically. When she suffered an injury on the court two years ago, she sought physical therapy, and was surprised to learn her Medicare insurance wouldn’t cover it.

She was, according to Medicare records, dying and in hospice.

“They said, ‘you’re in hospice.’ And I said, ‘what? What are you talking about?” Ianni said. “‘Are you kidding me? Do I look like I’m in hospice?’”

Ianni’s Medicare number had been stolen, and used by a company to fraudulently enroll her in hospice – specialized, compassionate care for terminal patients nearing the end of their lives. It was another example of fraud in the hospice industry, long a nationwide problem. But her case arose well after officials had promised to stamp it out in California, where the problem has been especially acute.

Medicare is federally administered, and hospices must be certified for reimbursements. But the state issues the licenses for hospices to operate.

Three years ago, California’s state auditor sounded the alarm that Los Angeles County had seen a 1,500% increase in hospice companies since 2010 – more than six times the national average relative to its elderly population.

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LA schools superintendent raided by FBI illegally overstayed visa before gaining legal status

As attention has turned to Los Angeles Unified School District superintendent Albert Carvalho in the wake of an FBI raid at his residence and the school district’s headquarters, a clip has resurfaced showing Carvalho admitting that he was an “undocumented migrant” in the United States.

In April 2025, Carvalho said in a speech, “I would be a hypocrite if I did not fight for those who today are facing conditions that over 40 years I faced as an undocumented migrant to this country.”

He later added that he came to the US at the age of 17, saying, “Education made me and saved me. I became a teacher, a principal, a superintendent leading the nation’s largest districts, four times selected as national superintendent of the year. Do not underestimate the power of the immigrant child who may very well become an adult who does well and good by America.”

Per the New York Times, Carvalho grew up in Portugal, and described growing up in a “poor environment,” being raised alongside his five siblings, two of whom died young, by parents with education that did not extend past the third grade.

After graduating from high school in the country, Carvalho came to the US on a visitor visa, which he overstayed and became illegally present in the country. He first worked as a dishwasher in Manhattan and eventually ended up in Miami, where he worked at restaurants, farms, and construction sites.

“Back in the mid-’80s, it was not difficult to find a job without documents,” Carvalho said. “They worked you more hours for less pay.”

He spent two years in the country illegally but eventually secured a student visa. He also obtained a Social Security number and legal work authorization. Per Governing, he eventually became a US citizen.

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Accused Killer of Astrophysicist Arrested for Trespassing on Scientist’s Property With Loaded Rifle Two Months Before Killing — Newsom-Appointed Judge Dropped Charges

New details have emerged regarding the accused killer of Caltech astrophysicist Carl Grillmair.

As The Gateway Pundit previously reported, astrophysicist Carl Grillmair, 67, was shot in his torso by a gunman who approached him on his porch on February 16.

Authorities have since arrested Freddy Snyder, 29, who has been charged with Grillmair’s murder and is being held on a $3 million bail.

New details obtained by the Los Angeles Times have revealed that Snyder was previously arrested two months earlier for trespassing on Grillmair’s property with a loaded, unregistered rifle.

Per The Los Angeles Times:

On Dec. 20, Lt. Michael Modica of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said, the scientist spotted someone possibly trespassing on his property and called law enforcement.

When deputies arrived and found Snyder in the area, Modica said, he was carrying a rifle and explained that he was on his way to the post office.

Grillmair’s home and the local post office are in opposite directions from Snyder’s home, property records show.

According to the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office, Snyder told deputies he was carrying the rifle just in case he ran into wild animals. But deputies noted that the rifle was loaded and not registered to Snyder, so they took him into custody.

In addition to one felony count of carrying a loaded firearm, the criminal complaint against Snyder charged him with trying to escape from the Palmdale station jail the day after he was arrested.

The New York Post further reported that Judge Osman Abbasi, appointed by Governor Gavin Newsom, dismissed Snyder’s felony gun charges.

Exclusive | Newsom-appointed judge gave suspect in Caltech genius’s slaying a slap on the wrist weeks before bloodbath https://t.co/WoJPp0m7ug pic.twitter.com/IJtk4VU0zR

— California Post (@californiapost) February 24, 2026

After dropping the felony gun charge, Judge Abbasi ordered Snyder to complete a gun safety course, and he was released from jail shortly thereafter.

Snyder was scheduled to appear in court again on February 5 regarding his case, but he did not show up for the hearing.

Despite not appearing, Snyder’s charges were dismissed under California Penal Code 1385, and just 11 days later, he allegedly murdered Grillmair.

Grillmair’s murder has rocked the astrophysicists’ community, considering he was a renowned researcher in the studies of Dark matter, Galactic structure, stellar populations, and exoplanets.

Grillmair was also notable in the community for finding water on a distant planet orbiting a star.

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DEVELOPING: FBI Raids Home of Far-Left Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent

The FBI executed a search warrant at the home of far-left Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent Alberto Carvalho.

FBI agents also raided the school district headquarters.

“FBI LA confirms they are currently executing search warrants at two addresses, which a separate federal law enforcement source tells @FoxNews are the home and office of Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent Alberto Carvalho. LAUSD is the 2nd biggest school district in the country,” Fox News reporter Bill Melugin said.

“We are told the underlying affidavit in support of the search warrant is under seal, so it’s unclear what potential wrongdoing Carvalho may be suspected of,” Melugin said.

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LA city council set to write $177 million in checks to activist nonprofits — including groups that sued the city

Los Angeles City Council members are poised to vote Tuesday on roughly $177 million in fast-tracked contracts, funneling taxpayer cash to a tight circle of powerful tenant-advocacy nonprofits — including groups that have repeatedly sued the city.

The package, championed by lefty mayoral hopeful Councilmember Nithya Raman, would lock in three-year deals financed largely by Measure ULA’s mansion-tax revenue. The money will primarily be used to run tenant eviction defense and homelessness-prevention programs.

Earlier this month, Raman’s Housing and Homelessness Committee signed off on the plan, clearing the way for final council approval of contracts with four dominant players in LA’s tenant-advocacy ecosystem: the Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles, Strategic Actions for a Just Economy (SAJE), Liberty Hill Foundation and the Southern California Housing Rights Center.

Together, the organizations form the backbone of the city’s “Stay Housed LA” network — a powerful alliance that provides legal defense, rental assistance and tenant organizing across Los Angeles while wielding significant influence at City Hall.

The same groups are also widely known for their aggressive street activism, organizing protests, demonstrations and rent strikes, and for filing high-profile lawsuits against the city over homelessness sweeps, policing and housing policies.

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Palisades Fire victims ‘insulted’ by new brush clearance bill

Fire victims in Pacific Palisades say they are frustrated and confused after receiving brush clearance bills from the City of Los Angeles for properties where their homes once stood.

What we know:

Nearly 14 months after last year’s deadly fire destroyed thousands of homes across the community, some residents say they were mailed $31 notices citing alleged noncompliance with brush clearance rules — even though their lots remain empty and covered mostly in dirt.

“This is one final blow. After everything that happened, they’re still trying to take money,” said resident Christine Martinez, whose home was destroyed in the fire.

Others echoed the same disbelief.

“I was a little astonished because there’s no house and no brush,” said Carol Sanborn, who lost the home she lived in for more than 40 years.

Sanborn says several neighbors have also received the notices, adding to the frustration among fire survivors still working to rebuild.

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Inside Dem Socialists’ extreme plan for Los Angeles — seizing property, replacing cops and closing jails

A radical left-wing group in Los Angeles has published a shocking 40-page roadmap to transform the nation’s second-largest city into a bizarre socialist experiment.

The Democratic Socialists of America’s LA chapter wants to straight-up seize private property through a “creative use of eminent domain,” take control of your neighborhood grocery store, and replace cops with unarmed social workers while shutting down jails.

Their Communist fever dream wishlist includes banning Airbnbs, grabbing golf courses for public housing, allowing noncitizen immigrants to vote in local elections, enforce a school curriculum that supports social justice, and eliminating all fossil fuel use by 2035.

The 3,500 member group has already helped elect several candidates to local office, and previously backed Nithya Raman, a DSA-member now running for mayor. They openly trash the Democratic Party establishment as capitalist sellouts and want to build “working class power” through what they call a “socialist mass organization.”

The manifesto, published in 2025 is more than 9,000-words long and gives an insight into the policies that a potential Mayor Raman has signed up to as a DSA member and could try to implement in LA. It targets the “status quo coalition” of elected officials, real estate developers, billionaires, nonprofits, and even some union leaders who’ve supposedly sold out workers.

They think they can actually pull this off in six to eight years through local elections and organizing.

“We are on the burning edge of the economic, climate, and moral crises that define this generation,” the manifesto warns, adding ominously: “The choice remains socialism or barbarism.”

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Communist LA Council Member Launches Mayoral Challenge Against Deranged Karen Bass

Over the weekend, Los Angeles City Council Member Nithya Raman launched what may be the most revealing mayoral campaign in the country. A member of both the Democrat Party and the Democrat Socialists of America, Raman is now running for mayor in 2026, positioning herself as the “accountable” alternative to Mayor Karen Bass. 

In reality, her candidacy exposes a deeper truth: the Democrat Party is no longer drifting toward socialism—it has embraced it.

Raman’s announcement was wrapped in familiar Democrat rhetoric—talk of accountability, urgency, affordability, and compassion. She positioned herself as ideologically aligned with Zohran Mamdani, the socialist who won the New York City mayoral race. Beneath the polished language, however, was a worldview that has failed everywhere it has been tried.

Raman is not just a progressive Democrat; she is an open socialist, part of an organization that explicitly advocates for government control over housing, energy, and large segments of the economy.

Democrats often insist that “democratic socialism” is different from socialism, and socialism is different from communism. History tells a different story. 

Every communist state in the world began as a socialist project. The Soviet Union. Mao’s China. Castro’s Cuba. Venezuela. Each promised fairness, equity, and government “accountability.” 

Each delivered shortages, corruption, repression, and economic collapse. The labels changed. The outcomes did not.

Raman’s own remarks highlight the contradiction. She criticizes City Hall for fiscal mismanagement while supporting the same tax-and-spend ideology that created Los Angeles’ budget crisis in the first place. 

She acknowledges that voters approved higher taxes for homelessness and housing, yet admits the city has failed to deliver results. That failure is the inevitable product of socialist governance—high spending, low accountability, and no consequences for failure.

Los Angeles already serves as a warning sign. Streetlights can take a year to fix. Homeless encampments persist despite billions spent. Housing costs continue to soar. Public trust has collapsed. 

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