In the latest example of the Trump administration’s and new U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ increased focus on the illicit drug trade, the U.S. Department of Justice has announced the formation of a unit designed to combat opioid-related health care fraud.
The Opioid Fraud and Abuse Detection Unit will rely on data to identify and prosecute individuals and companies that contribute to the opioid prescription and heroin addiction epidemic plaguing the country. The unit’s targets will include physicians and other providers who operate pill mills and pharmacies that illegally dispense or divert prescriptions for the dangerously addictive pain killers. Most of the program’s initial districts are in the Midwest and Southern states.
