By FireRescue1 Staff
NEW YORK — Ten FDNY EMS personnel were arrested Tuesday for their involvement in a disability insurance scam.
The scam, reported the New York Daily News, consisted of active and retired EMS personnel filing false claims with AFLAC health insurance, which offers payouts for employees who have a short-term disability. Once the claims were processed and they received payouts, employees returned to work and collected their regular paychecks.
“This is a shame. It’s unbelievable,” a colleague of one of the accused said.
Some arrested in the scam allegedly signed off on paperwork that allowed the scam to fly under the radar. Officials opened an investigation after the insurance company called the FDNY to verify an employee’s information for a disability claim, only to find out that employee was on duty that day.
Those involved in the scam are charged with stealing as much as $40 million.
Officials are expected to make more arrests; they suspect some firefighters are also involved in the scam.