Sacramento, California – California’s in-home care program serves more than 900,000 seniors and people with disabilities each year. Now, state investigators say a relatively small group of providers tried to exploit that system by billing Medi-Cal for care they allegedly could not have provided.
Attorney General Rob Bonta announced that felony charges have been filed against 103 In-Home Supportive Services providers following a statewide fraud investigation involving more than $4.5 million in allegedly improper claims.
The cases center on providers accused of billing Medi-Cal for IHSS hours while the people they were supposed to be caring for were admitted to acute care hospitals or skilled nursing facilities. Those institutional stays were also being paid for through Medi-Cal.
The California Department of Justice worked with the Department of Health Care Services to identify and investigate suspicious claims through data analysis, claims reviews and program-integrity referrals. DOJ auditors, Special Agents and Special Investigators examined cases stretching from Butte County to San Diego County.
Affected Medi-Cal members lived in 17 counties, including Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, Sacramento, San Bernardino, San Diego, Santa Clara, Fresno and Contra Costa counties.
“By enabling parents to care for their adult children with disabilities and allowing elderly individuals to age in place, IHSS provides a vital lifeline for families across the state. We are here to protect that lifeline,” Bonta said.
He noted that the alleged fraud represents only a small portion of California’s roughly $30 billion IHSS budget, but said abuse of Medi-Cal can threaten resources intended for vulnerable residents.
IHSS allows eligible seniors and people with disabilities to receive care at home rather than move into long-term nursing facilities. According to the state, the home-care model saves public programs approximately $100,000 per person annually compared with nursing facility care.
The 103 cases are part of a broader Medi-Cal fraud enforcement effort by the Attorney General’s Division of Medi-Cal Fraud and Elder Abuse. Recent actions have included a guilty plea in a case involving more than $400,000, participation in the 2026 National Health Care Fraud Takedown and charges connected to an alleged $267 million hospice fraud scheme.
Suspected IHSS fraud can be reported online to the California Department of Justice or by calling (800) 722-0432.
The charges announced in the cases are allegations. All defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.