Home Health & Hospice Week

The investigation into therapy provision practices at publicly traded companies appears to be taking its toll on Amedisys Inc. The Baton Rouge, La.-based national chain is closing or merging 39 locations and reducing its planned start-ups for this year from 40 to 10, the company says in a release. "The tremendous growth Amedisys has experienced over the last few years inevitably led to markets that could benefit from consolidation," COO Michael Snow says in the release. "This is a continuous process to enhance our infrastructure and adjust our operating culture."

The company expects to incur charges of $7 to $9 million this year as a result of the closures, mergers, and start-up discontinuances, it says.

It's not over: Amedisys has "received a civil investigative demand ("CID") issued by the U.S. Department of Justice pursuant to the federal False Claims Act," the company says in a separate release. "The CID requires the delivery of a wide range of documents and information to the United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Alabama."

Investigators have requested documents relating to the company's "clinical and business operations, including reimbursement and billing claims submitted to Medicare for home health services, and related compliance activities," Amedisys explains. "The CID generally covers the period from January 1, 2003, through the present."

Amedisys intends to cooperate with the DOJ, it says.

Amedisys stock fell on the news. The company's stock has dropped nearly 50 percent from a year ago, reports The Wall Street Journal. Stock for Almost Family Inc. is down 25 percent year-todate, Gentiva Health Services' stock is down nearly 20 percent, and LHC Group's stock is down 30 percent, the Journal notes.