Home Health & Hospice Week
Dallas HHA Owners, Recruiter Plead Guilty To Fraud
Four HHA owners and a patient recruiter have pled guilty in Dallas federal court to health care fraud. The two husband-and-wife owners of Alliance Healthcare Services -- Ernest and Edith Amadi and George and Agatha Opurum -- and patient recruiter Ollie Futrell participated in a scheme where records were falsified to make Alliance patients who were not homebound appear so, prosecutors say in a release. Alliance employees and owners also falsified time sheets and visit logs so they could bill for services inadequately rendered or not made at all, says the release from U.S. Attorney Sarah Saldaña. In addition to being owners, Ernest Amadi was the CEO, George Opurum was the CFO, and the wives were nurses. The Alliance owners also paid Futrell cash for recruiting patients for the agency. Futrell often paid patients $100 per month to receive home care, prosecutors charge. All five defendants will face sentencing in April. They could each face up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. A spokeswoman for Saldaña told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram that the case is ongoing and that she could not answer a question about whether beneficiaries will be prosecuted.
Home Health & Hospice Week
- Labor Law:
Say Goodbye To Companionship Exemption Under Proposal
Watch out for related lawsuits, attorney warns. Get ready to shoulder a whole new administrative [...] - Compensation:
Companionship Rule Change A Bust For Everyone
Rule will cost employers with no real benefit for workers, experts say. The Obama Administration [...] - Compliance:
Don't Jump The Gun On Companionship Exemption Planning
How much risk are you willing to take on? The Department of Labor's dramatic proposal [...] - HIPAA:
Polish Your HIPAA Practices In Advance Of Audits
Do your HIPAA P&Ps reflect your practices from years long past? Establishing HIPAA protocols isn't [...] - Hospice:
Study: Hospice Use In SNFs Produces Many Benefits
Hospice helps SNFs better meet patients' needs. Authorities are casting a very jaundiced eye at [...] - Industry Note:
Your 5010 Extension May Be Shorter Than You Think
Deadline will depend on your testing status. Get ready to start submitting 5010 claims by [...] - Industry Note:
No ABNs Necessary For Excluded Services
There is good news on the ABN front. Home health agencies are off the hook [...] - Industry Note:
Longstanding Hospice Claims Glitch Fixed
You can finally resume inputting the certifying hospice physician's NPI and name in the "OTH [...] - Industry Note:
RACs Can Request More Records
Keep a wary eye on what Medicare's Recovery Audit Contractors are doing now, because they [...] - Industry Note:
Missed The Hospice F2F? Take This Billing Step
Look for the small silver lining regarding billing for a hospice patient for whom you [...] - Industry Note:
Beware Weight Loss' Effect On Muscle, Bone
Tread carefully when your elderly patients are prescribed weight-loss diets. You may consider the impact [...] - Industry Note:
Fix For Outlier Claims Problem On The Way
If you receive outlier payments, you're not alone in finding them incorrect. "Outlier payments are [...] - Industry Note:
New CMS Website Pushes HH Compare Awareness
Your publicly reported outcomes on Home Health Compare may soon get more attention from your [...] - Industry Note:
Dallas HHA Owners, Recruiter Plead Guilty To Fraud
Four HHA owners and a patient recruiter have pled guilty in Dallas federal court to [...] - Industry Note:
Health System Closes Hospice Facility
Tucson-based Carondelet Health Net-work will close its 11-bed Holy Family Center hospice in Tucson, reports [...]
