Home Health & Hospice Week
HHA Owners Plead Guilty
Two Miami HHA owners and two em-ployees have pled guilty to a $20 million Medicare fraud scheme, the Department of Justice says in a release. Serendipity Home Health Inc. owners Ariel Rodriguez and Reynaldo Navarro paid kickbacks and bribes to patient recruiters in return for patients and bogus prescriptions, plans of care and certifications for medically unnecessary therapy and home health services, prosecutors say. Employees Ysel Salado and Melissa Rodriguez admitted that they cashed checks from Serendipity and provided the cash to Ariel Rodriguez and Navarro to use for the kickback payments. From 2007 to 2009, Serendipity nurses and office staff falsified patient records and billed for services never provided, according to the plea agreements.
Home Health & Hospice Week
- Hospice:
Hospice Payment Reform Rolls Toward 2013 Date
Quality reporting, surveys, and more discussed by CMS reps at industry meeting. Congress has asked [...] - Quality:
Take A Look At Your Potential New Quality Measures For Hospice
Pain, dyspnea, and patient preferences figure in possible future quality measures. Want an idea of [...] - Medical Review:
Shore Up Your Terminal Illness Documentation, Coding
Expect scrutiny for claims with dementia as the primary diagnosis. Denials for terminal illness-related problems [...] - Therapy:
Expect More Medical Review Of Your High-Price Therapy
Heed therapy cap law's new provisions. Therapy cap exceptions now apply through Dec. 31, thanks [...] - Diagnosis Coding:
CMS Settles On One-Year Delay For ICD-10
Don't count on the delay quite yet, coding expert warns. Home care providers have been [...] - Industry Note:
Stay On Track For 5010 Usage
MAC frowns on using 4010 form. CMS may have delayed 5010 enforcement until July 1, [...] - Industry Note:
Study Compares Post-Acute Costs
Home care is the cheapest care setting for post-acute care, and now the industry has [...] - Industry Note:
Home Care Providers See High Nurse Vacancy Rates
Despite the sluggish economy, many home care providers continue to have problems finding nurses. In [...] - Industry Note:
Medicare Contractors Look To RACs For Targets
Recovery Audit Contractors have announced their first home health topics (see Eli's HCW, Vol. XXI, [...] - Industry Note:
Obey Revalidation Date
If you got an extension on your Medicare enrollment revalidation deadline, don't assume it will [...] - Industry Note:
CMS Names More ACOs
The Accountable Care Organization payment model is growing, so you may not want to wait [...] - Industry Note:
Follow These Billing Tips For Hospice Room & Board
When submitting hospice room and board charges to secure a denial, make sure you're putting [...] - Industry Note:
Federal Court Shoots Down Challenge To Extrapolation
Gentiva Health Services Inc.' challenge to an extrapolation case has been shot down in federal [...] - Industry Note:
Multi-State Chain Makes Utah HHA Buy
Cornerstone Healthcare Inc. has bought Zion's Way Home Health and Hospice in St. George, Utah [...] - Industry Note:
HHA Owners Plead Guilty
Two Miami HHA owners and two em-ployees have pled guilty to a $20 million Medicare [...]
