Francia Aguila

Introduction

Francia Aguila, a 53-year-old part-owner of the Steinway Hope Medical clinic in Astoria, Queens, was arrested July 2, 2026 and charged with impersonating a doctor for more than three years — dressing in a white coat, calling herself “Doctor Fran,” physically examining patients and prescribing them medication despite holding no license to practice any profession in New York — while the clinic billed over $105,000 to Medicaid-funded insurers using a licensed nurse practitioner’s identity. Her alleged accomplice, 59-year-old Gifty Appiah of Staten Island, was arrested the same day for lending Aguila her name and credentials.

Background Information

According to the New York Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, Steinway Hope Medical contracted with multiple Medicaid-funded Managed Care Organizations — including Fidelis Care, Healthfirst and MetroPlus — using Appiah’s name and credentials as a licensed nurse practitioner, which allowed the clinic to submit claims for reimbursement and be paid with Medicaid funds. Appiah was allegedly paid $10,000 a month to act as the clinic’s sole provider of medical services, but rarely appeared at the clinic, instead letting Aguila examine the patients who came for treatment. The fraud scheme, per the felony complaint, ran from March 16, 2021 to November 12, 2024.

The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation

Charged, not convicted. Aguila faces felony charges of unauthorized practice of a profession and falsifying business records, plus a misdemeanor count of unauthorized use of a professional title. The allegations are unadjudicated and she is presumed innocent.

Prosecutors allege that Aguila, who did not possess a license to practice medicine or nursing in any capacity, held herself out as a medical doctor at Steinway Hope — referring to herself as “Dr. Fran” and having others do the same — and physically examined patients who came for bona fide medical treatment. During those examinations she allegedly used a stethoscope to listen to patients’ hearts and lungs and a penlight to examine their eyes, then prescribed medications using Appiah’s identity and professional credentials. The complaint alleges she entered false records into the clinic’s electronic medical system documenting that Appiah had examined patients when she had not, and that those false entries were used to submit claims that paid the clinic over $100,000 — $105,018.20 in billed Medicaid-funded claims, by the Attorney General’s accounting — to which neither Aguila nor the clinic was entitled.

The New York Post, which covered the announcement, described Aguila as a “Long Island con artist” who “regularly saw patients” at the Queens clinic despite having no license to practice medicine.

Public Reaction and Consequences

Attorney General Letitia James put the case in patient-safety terms. “Practicing medicine without a license risks the lives of New Yorkers and undermines the integrity of our health care system,” James said. “New Yorkers in need of medical care sought treatment at Steinway Hope Medical, where they were taken advantage of by a fake doctor as part of an elaborate Medicaid fraud scheme. My office will continue to root out fraud in our state’s Medicaid program and protect New Yorkers by bringing unlicensed practitioners to justice.” The Post’s coverage framed the same conduct as a fraud story first — an “elaborate Medicaid fraud scheme allegedly totaling over $100,000 that lasted more than three years.”

Aguila and Steinway Hope Medical were each charged with one count of Unauthorized Practice of a Profession, one count of Falsifying Business Records in the First Degree, and one count of Unauthorized Use of a Professional Title. Appiah was charged in a separate felony complaint with offering false instruments for filing.

Current Status

Both Aguila and Appiah were arrested and charged on July 2, 2026, the day of the Attorney General’s announcement, and Aguila’s felony complaint in Queens criminal court carries docket number CR-021750-26QN. No disposition beyond the charges themselves appears in the complaint or the announcement, and both defendants remain presumed innocent of the charged conduct.

Impact on Their Career/Life

A clinic part-owner who spent more than three years performing stethoscope exams and writing prescriptions under a borrowed license now faces felony charges, and her clinic’s entire billing relationship with New York’s Medicaid program has been laid out in a public felony complaint. The patients who came to Steinway Hope for genuine medical care learned from the Attorney General’s announcement that the person in the white coat examining them had no license at all — and that the practitioner whose name was on their prescriptions rarely showed up. Whatever the outcome in court, “Doctor Fran” is finished as a medical provider in New York.

Sources

New York Attorney General, “Attorney General James Announces Takedown of Fraudulent Queens Medical Clinic” — source
People of the State of New York v. Francia Aguila and Steinway Hope Medical, LLC, felony complaint (Docket No. CR-021750-26QN) — source
New York Post, “Long Island con artist posed as doctor in NYC and regularly saw patients in $100K fraud scheme: AG” — source