$135 Million fraud bombshell: Florida company preyed on mentally ill and unemployed to pocket ACA subsidies
Florida – Federal authorities say a Florida-based insurance brokerage and its former parent company will pay more than $135 million to resolve a sweeping fraud case tied to Affordable Care Act enrollments.
This closes another major chapter in an investigation that centered on the alleged exploitation of vulnerable consumers for profit.
According to the Department of Justice, at the center of the case is AP of South Florida, LLC, or APSF, which has agreed to plead guilty to major fraud against the United States and pay $27.6 million in restitution.
In a parallel civil settlement, AssuredPartners, Inc., the national insurance brokerage partnership that previously owned APSF, agreed to pay $107 million to resolve allegations under the False Claims Act.
Federal prosecutors said AssuredPartners was not charged in the criminal case.
According to court filings, APSF used senior executives and employees, along with outside “street marketers,” to target low-income and highly vulnerable people, including individuals dealing with homelessness, unemployment, mental health conditions, and substance abuse disorders.
Investigators said some were offered cash or gift cards to sign up for subsidized ACA plans or to hand over personal information so applications could be filed on their behalf.
The government said the scheme led to thousands of fraudulent ACA applications and triggered $141.5 million in improper federal subsidies.
Prosecutors allege APSF falsely inflated income information so applicants appeared to qualify for fully subsidized coverage, then used deceptive tactics to push enrollments that generated commissions and bonus payments from insurers.
In some cases, officials said, the consequences for consumers were severe. People who had been enrolled in plans they did not qualify for reportedly lost access to Medicaid or other local assistance programs and were left facing medication costs, co-pays, and coverage gaps they could not afford. Court records cited by the Justice Department described situations in which people with opioid addiction or other serious medical needs ended up worse off after being switched into plans that did not match their care needs.
“APSF defrauded the U.S. government in order to line their pockets by exploiting the vulnerable,” said FBI Director Kash Patel.
“The FBI and its partners are working every day to put an end to corporate malpractice. We are turning off the spigot and other entities ripping off the taxpayer for illicit gain should take note.”
The criminal case also follows the earlier prosecution of APSF’s former president, Cory Lloyd, who was convicted at trial in November 2025 and sentenced to 20 years in prison. Prosecutors said he continued a fraud scheme that began at a legacy entity before APSF acquired certain assets in February 2021.
The civil settlement grew out of a whistleblower lawsuit, and the whistleblower is set to receive $24.3 million from the recovery. Federal officials said the case reflects a broader push to crack down on health care fraud and abuse. More information about the Justice Department’s health care fraud efforts is available at justice.gov/criminal-fraud/health-care-fraud-unit.
