Home Health & Hospice Week
HHA Fraudsters Get Prison Time, Multi-Million-Dollar Restitution
Michigan HHA employees get prison sentences and millions in restitution for a $13.8 million home health care fraud scheme, the DOJ reports in a Dec. 11 release. Physical therapy assistant Hetal Barot is the latest conspirator to hear her sentencing -- 30 months imprisonment and more than $1.3 million in restitution.
Barot is one of 19 conspirators involved in the health care fraud scheme involving Detroit-area Physicians Choice Home Health Care LLC, along with three other HHAs -- First Care Home Health Care LLC, Quantum Home Care Inc. and Moonlite Home Care Inc. Barot and her co-conspirators allegedly falsified medical documentation and files to bill bogus claims to Medicare. From May 2009 through September 2011, the four HHAs purportedly received nearly $14 million in Medicare payments for fraudulent physical therapy claims.
Barot and nine other co-defendants pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit health care fraud, while three co-defendants are fugitives and six others are awaiting trial, the DOJ states. The Medicare Fraud Strike Force, under the U.S. Attorney’s Office, spearheaded the investigation. The Strike Force is now working in nine U.S. cities and has charged more than 1,480 defendants for defrauding Medicare of more than $4.8 billion in false claims.
Home Health & Hospice Week
- Audits:
Use These Tactics To Prepare For ZPIC Audits
Why you should focus on 7 specific problems. With the wide variety of compliance issues [...] - Compliance:
How To Win A ZPIC Appeal
What evidence is most compelling to auditors. Wading through the appeals process for Zone Program [...] - Regulations:
What The New Informal Dispute Resolution Provision Means For You
Keep these factors in mind when pursuing this alternative sanction. Along with a myriad of [...] - Coding Corner:
Keep Your Functional Status Codes & Modifiers At Arm's Reach
Cozy up to G-codes and modifiers for tracking patient status, goals and severity level. If [...] - Management Strategies:
Build A Winning Team That's Loyal For The Long Run
Unlock the secret that motivates your employees and unleash their productivity with this one tool. [...] - Industry Note:
MedPAC Calls For Lower Payments To HHAs
Commission wants to repeal the Medicare SGR, too. You’ll have lower home health payments and [...] - Industry Note:
CMS Announces Possible Future Hospice Data Collection
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services wants more hospice data, responding to an outcry [...] - Industry Note:
WebEx Training Module for Hospice QRP Data Entry Now Available
You now have help with the Hospice Quality Reporting Program, in the form of a [...] - Industry Note:
False Claims Act Nets Nearly $5 Billion in FY 2012
Federal watchdog agencies netted nearly $5 billion in False Claims Act collections -- setting a massive [...] - Industry Note:
HHA Fraudsters Get Prison Time, Multi-Million-Dollar Restitution
Michigan HHA employees get prison sentences and millions in restitution for a $13.8 million home [...] - Industry Note:
IRS Passes New Medical Device Tax
The new medical device tax may make your costs skyrocket, especially when the added costs [...] - Industry Note:
OIG Wants Tougher Scrutiny of Hospice Claims
The OIG released its Compendium of Unimplemented Recommendations (December 2012 Edition), fighting for -- among numerous [...] - Industry Note:
Fiscal Cliff Talks Focus on Medicare Cuts
Medicare cuts and changes come to the table as the "fiscal cliff" looms, with suggestions [...] - Industry Note:
Medicaid Audit Programs Hemorrhaging Money, GAO Says
Medicaid is paying twice for audit activities, according to a GAO report released on Dec. [...] - Industry Note:
Your Dual-Eligible Patients Have Varying Consumer Protections
Your dual-eligible patients have varying consumer protections depending on the particular programs, payment systems and [...]
