Add the HHS Office of Inspector Gene-ral to the list of organizations that want lower home health agency payment rates for Medicare.
In its latest semiannual report to Congress, the OIG reiterates its recommendation to "reduce the Home Health Agency update factor to account for the high error rate found in OIG’s review."
In the report, the OIG also notes the home health industry’s fraud vulnerabilities. It cites the case of Safe Home Health Care Agency in Miami, where the owner, administrator and seven other defendants were sentenced to more than 16 years combined for a kickback scheme. Maria Rueda and Jorge Sell used beneficiary information obtained from kickbacks to submit false claims and prescriptions that either were never provided or were medically unnecessary, the OIG says.