A Queen Creek woman has been sentenced to 14 years in federal prison for orchestrating a healthcare fraud scheme that extracted more than $54 million from Arizona Medicaid. Rita Ntusa Anagho, 54, a former nurse practitioner, was sentenced last week after pleading guilty to submitting over $69 million in false bills through her Tempe-based business.
Anagho owned Tusa Integrated Clinic, LLC, an addiction treatment center located on Rural Road. Between May 2022 and March 2023, the clinic billed the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System (AHCCCS) for services that were either never provided or not delivered as claimed. The scheme specifically targeted patients enrolled in the American Indian Health Care Program, which offers higher reimbursement rates than other Medicaid plans.
Federal officials stated that Anagho and her associates utilized a network of unlicensed sober living homes to cycle vulnerable individuals through different residential properties. This process forced patients to switch their health plans so the clinic could aggressively bill for care that was not actually rendered. The fraud also involved paying illegal kickbacks to recruiters who brought in these patients.
In addition to the prison term, a judge ordered Anagho to pay nearly $55 million in restitution. She must also forfeit approximately $9.5 million seized from seven bank accounts and almost $7 million in real estate assets. The seized properties include her Queen Creek residence on West Silverdale Road and a hospital she owned in Florence.
Authorities noted that the illicit funds financed high-stakes gambling. Assistant U.S. Attorney General Colin M. McDonald emphasized that the Fraud Division is committed to holding accountable those who exploit Medicaid systems, particularly programs designed for Native American health care. U.S. Attorney Timothy Courchaine described the sentence as a signal of the seriousness of healthcare fraud and its damage to society.
