$252 million fraud at Senasa: 28 detained and ruling pending
Operation Cobra 2.0-A resulted in 28 detentions, including doctors, on suspicion of fraud against the state health insurance scheme for approximately 15 billion pesos. Judge Rigoberto Sena will announce the coercive measures this Sunday.
Operation Cobra 2.0-A: doctors and pharmacists charged with massive fraud against the state health insurer
Operation Cobra 2.0-A, executed on 18 September, resulted in the detention of 28 people following 37 raids at various locations across the country, among them doctors and individuals linked to the pharmaceutical sector. This is reported by prensa-latina.cu, which has followed the judicial development of the case closely during the week.
The Public Prosecutor's Office is investigating an alleged scheme that reportedly defrauded Senasa—the state health insurance administrator—by approximately 15 billion pesos, equivalent to around 252 million dollars.
Thirteen charged admit to the facts
This week's hearings expanded the public scope of the case file. The Public Prosecutor's Office reported that 13 of the charged individuals admitted to the facts attributed to them and cooperated with the authorities. For this reason, the prosecution requested house arrest for nine of them, while maintaining its request for 18 months of preventive detention for 18 others. In support of its submissions, the prosecution states it has presented 706 pieces of evidence.
Judge Rigoberto Sena of the Permanent Services Office of the National District announced that he will make his decision on the requested coercive measures known this Sunday.
Senasa's significance raises the stakes
Senasa is the Health Risk Management Administrator with the largest number of affiliated members in the country. At the end of 2025, it had more than 7.4 million insured persons and coverage exceeding 70 per cent of the Dominican population. Any questioning of its finances or use of its resources affects funds intended to guarantee medical services to millions of people.
Investigation initiated from November 2024
The investigation did not begin with the September raids. The Dominican Government maintains that from November 2024 it instructed the Public Prosecutor's Office, the Chamber of Accounts, and other control bodies to investigate reports of alleged irregularities at the institution.
In September 2025, the Presidency delivered to the Prosecutor's Office a report drawn up by the Superintendence of Health and Labour Risks and Senasa on irregularities detected. In January 2026, the Comptroller General's Office established an Internal Audit Unit at the entity, at the request of the new executive director, Edward Guzmán, as part of a process to strengthen internal controls.
Debate over state oversight
For analysts, the investigation raises questions about the supervisory systems of an entity that administers public resources and opens the debate on the effectiveness of internal controls, the oversight of service providers, and the state's capacity to detect potential irregularities in a timely manner.
This Sunday's ruling on the coercive measures will be merely the next chapter in a process with a long judicial road ahead.
Source: Google News DO — Crime