--- title: "Elizabeth Holmes Says She Can’t Afford $250 Per Month to Pay Back Victims" description: "As the saying goes, the bill always comes due. But according to a report from Bloomberg, former Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes says she just can't pay hers, sorry! Per the report, as part of the disgraced ex-executive's penance for defrauding investors of billions and putting everyday people seeking health services at risk, Holmes and her […]" date: "2023-06-15" modified: "2023-06-15" authors: - name: "Maggie Harrison Dupré" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/mharrison" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/elizabeth-holmes-cant-afford-victims" categories: - "Future Society" tags: - "elizabeth holmes" - "health" - "the digest" - "theranos" --- # Elizabeth Holmes Says She Can’t Afford $250 Per Month to Pay Back Victims ![Former Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes' lawyers claim she can't pay monthly installments of $250 to her victims after prison.]() *\Image: Philip Pacheco/Getty Images\* ## Scrounging for Change As part of her penance for defrauding investors out of billions, [disgraced biotech executive]() and famed fraudster Elizabeth Holmes and her ex, former Theranos COO and president Ramesh "Sunny" Balwani, have been ordered to pay their victims $452 million in restitution. But Holmes' lawyers claim that she has "limited financial resources," as [*Bloomberg* reports](), and won't be able to pay out the nine-figure sum — let alone the monthly installments of $250 she could be required to pay out once released from prison. It's a staggering new low for Holmes, especially considering her estimated net worth was once valued at [around $4.5 billion]() at the peak of her blood-testing startup back in 2015, which quickly [dropped to zero]() once it turned out she was a fraud. ## Clerical Errors Federal prosecutors are saying that there was a clerical error in restitution-related court filings, and as a result, Holmes hasn't yet been put on any kind of payment schedule, which is usually commonplace for a major case like this. Demanding monthly installments ensures that there's some sort of accountability, as *Bloomberg* points out. Think of it as Afterpay, but for convicted fraudsters. As such, prosecutors are now asking US district judge Edward Davila to correct the paperwork. If he does, Holmes would be required to start either making monthly payments of either $250 or ten percent of her salary to her victims upon her release from prison [roughly 11 years]() from now. Importantly, Balwani has already been ordered to start paying in installments — $1,000 per month or at least ten percent of his salary — once his 13-year sentence is up. Both Balwani and Holmes have also agreed to pay $25 towards restitution each quarter while incarcerated. Even that could prove to be more difficult than it sounds. [According to *CNN*](), Holmes could be making as little as $0.12 per hour while in prison. **More on biotech scandals:** [*Startup Accidentally Tells over 400 Patients They Might Have Cancer*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've reported extensively on the rise of AI as a cultural and business force shaping the media industry, and more broadly how those dynamics are changing how we all consume and share information and relate to one another. I'm also fascinated by public health policy and ethics, the role of emerging tech in politics and governance — and the powerful people and forces at those intersections — climate change, and the environment. My investigation on Sports Illustrated's use of AI-generated authors with fictional biographies won a 2024 Mirror Award for "Best Story on Media Coverage of Artificial Intelligence in Journalism and the Media" from Syracuse University's SI Newhouse School, I contributed to Niemen Lab's 2025 Predictions for Journalism series, and I've discussed my work for Futurism during appearances on NPR, CNN, the BBC, the CBC, and more. I grew up in rural Pennsylvania and attended the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where I played Division I field hockey for the Minutewomen as a midfielder. Since then, I've lived in New Orleans, Louisiana and Manhattan, New York. I spend my free time running, reading, perusing archival fashion, and searching for the world’s best negroni. I also have a debonair tuxedo cat, Westley, who's named after "The Princess Bride." ### Author social links [Bluesky]()