Home Health & Hospice Week

Your problems with the face-to-face physician encounter requirements could get you in more trouble than just denied claims. F2F violations contributed to one home health agency’s $5.6 million settlement of fraud charges, according to a Department of Justice release.

ResCare Iowa Inc., a subsidiary of Louis-ville, Ky.-based ResCare Inc., billed Medicare and Medicaid without documenting compliance with F2F or physician order requirements from 2009 to 2014, the DOJ says.

“Home health care providers that receive Medicare and Medicaid funds must abide by rules designed to ensure taxpayer funds are spent properly and that patients receive the appropriate care,” HHS OIG Special Agent in Charge Gerald T. Roy says. “We will continue to hold health care pro-viders accountable for submitting improper claims.”