The office says it’s recovered more than $1 billion in fraudulent Medicaid overpayments since 2002. The Medicaid program is jointly funded by the state and federal governments, so any money recovered must be shared with the federal treasury.

Jerry Strickland is a spokesman for the state attorney general’s office.

“You look at that kind of fraud that’s happening in the system, and you realize that the number $400 million is certainly a big number that’s gone back to the State of Texas. But it’s humbling, because we know there’s much more out there.”

Strickland says most of the money recovered stems from whistleblower lawsuits filed by private parties. Texas’ portion of the recoveries go back into the state’s general fund.