Florida nursing assistant convicted of stealing millions in Medicare fraud scheme

Published January 22, 2026 5:25pm ET



A federal jury found a Florida healthcare worker guilty of defrauding the state of over $11 million in Medicare funds. 

Christian Cruz faces up to 125 years in prison after he was convicted of running a medical equipment supplier operation in which he shipped orthotic braces to Medicare beneficiaries nationwide, including those “who neither requested nor required the braces,” and then submitted false claims to receive payment from the government, according to federal prosecutors.

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