18 U.S.C. 1035, False statements relating to health care matters: How Federal Cases Ended, FY2016–2025
Guilty pleas ended 186 of the 206 federal cases (90%) in which 18 U.S.C. 1035 was the most serious charge at the end of the case, over fiscal years 2016 to 2025. Just 6 went to trial, and 2 of those ended in an acquittal. Of the 190 people convicted, 91 (48%) received a prison term on that charge, w
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In brief: Guilty pleas ended 186 of the 206 federal cases (90%) in which 18 U.S.C. 1035 was the most serious charge at the end of the case, over fiscal years 2016 to 2025. Just 6 went to trial, and 2 of those ended in an acquittal. Of the 190 people convicted, 91 (48%) received a prison term on that charge, with a median of 23 months.
This post uses the Federal Judicial Center's records of 206 federal defendants whose cases ended in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. The series also draws on the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 659,036 people sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. It is part of the Federal Prosecution Analysis series, which builds on Military Moves Toward Sentencing Guidelines to Mirror the Federal System. How the numbers were built: How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built.
How Most Cases Ended
Of the 206 defendants, 186 (90%) pleaded guilty. The charges were dismissed for 14 (7%). Trials accounted for 6 (3%).
The Federal Judicial Center data counts each defendant whose case ended, so dismissals and acquittals are part of the total. Dismissed means the charges were dismissed. Some of those came on the government's motion, for example after a guilty plea in another case.
What the Official Heading Says
Section 1035 of Title 18 is headed "False statements relating to health care matters". The post describes the statute by that heading alone.
Each of the 206 defendants faced the charge at the felony level. The records show 0 Class A misdemeanors and 0 petty offenses under this section.
Were Prison Terms Common After Conviction?
Convictions reached 190, which is 92% of all defendants. A prison term on this charge went to 91 of them (48%).
Among those with a term of 1 month or more, the median was 23 months. This figure covers only the sentence on this charge. Terms on other counts in the same case are not included.
Trials Before a Jury
All 6 trials were decided by a jury, and 2 ended in an acquittal (2 of 6). No bench trials appear. A group of 6 trials is too small to treat as an acquittal rate.
Counsel at the End of the Case
Private (retained) counsel represented 142 defendants (69%). Federal public or community defenders and CJA panel attorneys each represented 31 (15%). A CJA panel attorney is a private lawyer appointed by the court. 1 defendant had no lawyer.
Guilty pleas ended 94% of cases with a CJA panel attorney, 91% with retained counsel, and 87% with a federal defender. Federal defender cases had the highest dismissal share, 13%, and no trials. Retained counsel had 5 of the trials, with 2 acquittals, and CJA panel attorneys had 1, with no acquittal.
Type of counsel is recorded when the case ends. People who hire a lawyer and people who receive an appointed one face different charges and circumstances. So these figures describe groups of cases, not how good the lawyers were.
| Type of counsel at the end of the case | Defendants | Pleaded guilty | Dismissed | Trials | Acquitted at trial |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Federal public or community defender | 31 | 87% | 13% | 0 | 0 |
| CJA panel attorney | 31 | 94% | 3% | 1 | 0 (0 of 1) |
| Private (retained) counsel | 142 | 91% | 6% | 5 | 2 (2 of 5) |
| Self-represented | 1 | 1 of 1 | 0 of 1 | 0 | 0 |
From One Fiscal Year to the Next
Between 10 and 25 cases ended each year. The fewest, 10, came in fiscal year 2021, and the most, 25, came in fiscal year 2016.
The guilty plea rate was lowest in fiscal year 2020, at 76%, when dismissals reached 19%. It was highest in fiscal year 2024, at 96%. An acquittal was recorded in fiscal year 2020 and another in fiscal year 2022.
| Fiscal year | Cases ended | Pleaded guilty | Dismissed | Trials | Acquitted at trial |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 25 | 88% | 4% | 2 | 0 (0 of 2) |
| 2017 | 23 | 91% | 4% | 1 | 0 (0 of 1) |
| 2018 | 23 | 91% | 9% | 0 | 0 |
| 2019 | 19 | 95% | 5% | 0 | 0 |
| 2020 | 21 | 76% | 19% | 1 | 1 (1 of 1) |
| 2021 | 10 | 80% | 20% | 0 | 0 |
| 2022 | 20 | 95% | 0% | 1 | 1 (1 of 1) |
| 2023 | 24 | 92% | 4% | 1 | 0 (0 of 1) |
| 2024 | 23 | 96% | 4% | 0 | 0 |
| 2025 | 18 | 94% | 6% | 0 | 0 |
What Is Not in These Records
The approved crosswalk does not pair this statute with any close court-martial offense, so the numbers stand on their own. The data has no details about the statements, the amounts involved, or the reasons for any dismissal or verdict.
How We Counted
Every federal defendant whose case ended in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 and whose most serious charge at the end of the case (TTITLE1) was under 18 U.S.C. 1035, any subsection (206), Federal Judicial Center, counted as in the federal courts' Table D-4. Type of counsel is TCOUNSEL; labels from the FJC criminal codebook. Section heading from the U.S. Code as published by the Office of the Law Revision Counsel (release point 119-136).
Federal fiscal years run from October 1 to September 30. No person, judge, or lawyer is identified in any of these records.
What to Keep in Mind
Who is in each set of numbers. The federal sentencing numbers come from the U.S. Sentencing Commission. They count only people who were convicted and sentenced in federal district court. People whose cases were dismissed or who were acquitted are not in them. The military numbers come from court-martial results, which include acquittals. To compare acquittal or dismissal rates, the federal side uses a different source: the Federal Judicial Center's case data, which counts every defendant whose case ended.
How "plea" and "trial" are counted. In the federal sentencing numbers, "trial" means the person was convicted after a trial, including people who pleaded guilty to some counts and went to trial on others. People acquitted at trial are not in these numbers at all (see "Who is in each set of numbers"). In the federal case data, the trial rate counts both convictions and acquittals at trial among all defendants whose cases ended, including dismissed cases. Military numbers count contested cases that reached a verdict. These denominators are not the same, and each post states the one it uses.
Time periods. Federal numbers are by federal fiscal year (October 1 to September 30), based on the sentencing date. The military numbers are by trial date. Neither source has the date of the offense, so a change in law shows up in either data set gradually.
Type of counsel describes groups of cases, not lawyers. The Federal Judicial Center records the type of counsel at the end of the case. Defendants who hire a lawyer differ from defendants who receive an appointed lawyer in their charges, criminal history, and circumstances, and some defendants change lawyers during a case. Differences in outcomes by type of counsel therefore cannot be credited to the type of lawyer.
Related Analysis
- Military Moves Toward Sentencing Guidelines to Mirror the Federal System (the background article)
- Federal Prosecution Analysis (all federal posts)
- How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built (sources and method)
- 18 U.S.C. 1030, Fraud and related activity in connection with computers: How Federal Cases Ended, FY2016–2025 (same title of the U.S. Code)
- 18 U.S.C. 1031, Major fraud against the United States: How Federal Cases Ended, FY2016–2025 (same title of the U.S. Code)
- 18 U.S.C. 1038, False information and hoaxes: How Federal Cases Ended, FY2016–2025 (same title of the U.S. Code)
- 18 U.S.C. 1040, Fraud in connection with major disaster or emergency benefits: How Federal Cases Ended, FY2016–2025 (same title of the U.S. Code)
- Appointed vs. Retained Lawyers in Federal Criminal Cases: How Cases Ended, 2016–2025
- Are Courts-Martial More Likely to End in Acquittal Than Federal Trials?
- U.S. Sentencing Commission, Individual Offender Datafiles (source)
- Federal Judicial Center, Integrated Database (criminal defendants) (source)
About the author. Jocelyn C. Stewart is a retired Army JAG with more than 24 years of trying courts-martial and more than 200 jury trials. She hosts Where All The Bodies Are Buried and runs the Law Office of Jocelyn C. Stewart. This analysis is for education and information only. It is not legal advice, and every case is different.