A French court on Wednesday condemned a nurse to two years under house arrest for stealing more than $1.6 million from national health insurance through claims for bogus appointments.
The court in the southern town of Marseille found the 67-year-old guilty of a “large-scale scam” that notably exploited the details of vulnerable migrants.
From 2017 to 2020, she billed the national health insurance for 81,449 imaginary services, using the data of people eligible for fully refundable healthcare, including acquaintances and migrants on a charity list.
This allowed her to claim up to 1,524,538 euros ($1,622,603) from more than 30 regional national health insurance funds.
The court seized eight real estate properties she had acquired with the proceeds, as well as some money on her and husband’s bank accounts.
It sentenced her to two years under house arrest plus another possible three, depending on her behaviour, paying a 30,000-euro ($31,900) fine and reimbursing the damages.
It also forbade her from ever again performing her profession.
