Home Health & Hospice Week
University Health System Settles Home Care Fraud Charges
DOJ outlines atypical settlement.
Whistleblower lawsuits aren’t threats to only freestanding, for-profit home health agencies.
So suggests a recently announced fraud settlement with the University of Pennsylvania.
Penn, on behalf of University of Pennsylvania Health System, will pay the relatively modest sum of $75,787 to resolve allegations that Penn Care at Home violated the False Claims Act by submitting Medicare claims “for services not rendered and for services that were not reasonable or necessary,” the Department of Justice says in a release. The DOJ doesn’t provide details of the allegations, but does note that they arose from a qui tam lawsuit filed in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
Note: In addition to the usual HHS Office of Inspector General involvement in the investigation, the U.S. Office of Personnel Management OIG also participated.
As part of the settlement agreement, UPHS will implement new compliance oversight measures for its home health entities and will annually submit certified compliance reports pertaining to those entities to the U.S. Attorney’s Office through 2019, according to the DOJ release. “The settlement releases UPHS from liability for conduct pertaining to a specific limited number of episodes of patient care,” it adds.
Home Health & Hospice Week
- Prior Authorization:
Get Home Health Prior Auth Clues From DME Experience
Expansion of the program is likely to be quick. Home health agencies are hoping that [...] - Quality:
5-Star HHA Number Drops Dramatically In HH Compare Update
CAHPS methodology leads to big fluctuation in 5-star ratio. If you haven’t checked your Home [...] - Regulations:
Keep An Eye On How IMPACT Act Will Impact You
Plus: Check your OASIS submission stats before they cost you. Medicare is picking up steam [...] - Hospice:
Payment Reform Billing Problems Plague Hospices
Plus: HIS changes may give rise to hospice case mix system. Under hospice payment reform [...] - Strategy:
Follow 5 Tips To Navigate The Tougher Hospice Environment
Medicare data monitoring kicks into high gear. The feds have gotten serious about tracking red [...] - Industry Note:
University Health System Settles Home Care Fraud Charges
DOJ outlines atypical settlement. Whistleblower lawsuits aren’t threats to only freestanding, for-profit home health agencies. [...] - Industry Note:
New DOL Guidance Gives Compliance Assist
If you’re trying to figure out when sleep counts — and when it doesn’t — [...] - Industry Note:
Beware New Clerical Error Correction Process
Don’t try to use the clerical error reopening form if Palmetto GBA is your HHH [...] - Industry Note:
Missing Diagnosis On NOE Will Result In Return
Starting this fall, a hospice Notice of Election missing a principal diagnosis will get kicked [...] - Industry Note:
Mergers & Acquisitions Stats Trend Upward
The home care mergers and acquisitions market is picking up, according to an analysis of [...] - Industry Note:
Ensign Group Makes Hospice Buy In Iowa
The Ensign Group Inc.’s home health and hospice portfolio subsidiary, Cornerstone Healthcare Inc., has acquired [...] - Industry Note:
Hospice Provider Expands Post-Acute Presence
Pensacola, Fla.-based post-acute company Covenant Care has acquired Medicare-certified home health agency Peoples Home Health [...] - Industry Note:
Physicians Convicted For Sham Hospice Certs, Kickbacks
Following a two-week trial in federal court, a jury convicted two California physicians of falsely [...] - Industry Note:
Don't Flub Your Address Requirements On 855
Don’t get your address requirements on the Medicare enrollment form mixed up — because there [...]
