Hospice

Updates, policy and news in the Hospice industry.

Medicare Hospice and Home Health Fraud, Part 3

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This is part three of the series of posts on hospice and home health fraud.  Parts one and two can be accessed below. https://rhislop3.com/medicare-hospice-and-home-health-fraud-part-1/ https://rhislop3.com/medicare-hospice-and-home-health-fraud-part-2/ Recent Cases and Settlements in Medicare Fraud High-Profile Hospice Fraud Convictions Several recent cases highlight the persistence of fraudulent practices in hospice care billing under Medicare. One notable example involves … Read more

Medicare Hospice and Home Health Fraud, Part 2

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Late last week, I posted the first part of a three-post, comprehensive review of Medicare hospice and home health fraud. Medicare home health and hospice billing fraud has emerged as a significant issue within the U.S. healthcare system, costing taxpayers billions of dollars annually and jeopardizing the integrity of federal health programs. This is part … Read more

Medicare Hospice and Home Health Fraud, Part 1

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Medicare home health and hospice billing fraud has emerged as a significant issue within the U.S. healthcare system, costing taxpayers billions of dollars annually and jeopardizing the integrity of federal health programs. Fraudulent practices in this sector not only drain public resources but also compromise the quality of care provided to vulnerable populations, including the … Read more

DOJ Recovers $2.9 Billion in Fraud in 2024

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The Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that the agency recovered $2.9 billion in resolutions to federal False Claims Act allegations for 2024 (fiscal year ending September 30).  This is a slight increase from the historic $2.7 billion recovered in fiscal year 2023. Office of Public Affairs | False Claims Act Settlements and Judgments Exceed $2.9B … Read more

CMS Reinforces Hospice Regulatory, Fraud Focus

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Yesterday, CMS dropped a memo to state survey agencies titled, “Ensuring Consistency in the Hospice Survey Process to Identify Quality of Care Concerns and Potential Fraud Referrals”. The memo is available here: qso-25-06-hospice According to CMS, the memorandum aims to bolster current mechanisms for detecting instances where a hospice provider’s failure to adhere to the … Read more

Federal Judge Key Ruling on False Claims Act

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On September 30, US District Judge Kathryn Kimball Mizelle from the Middle District of Florida ruled in a landmark decision that the qui tam provision of the federal False Claims Act (FCA) is unconstitutional. This ruling could have significant impact on whistleblower (Qui Tam) actions filed against healthcare providers, particularly home health and hospice (most … Read more

Exploring Age-Friendly Healthcare Programs

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The Accreditation Commission for Health Care, Inc. (ACHC) has launched two new specialty credentials for organizations providing home care and/or hospice.  These programs are in line with the Age-Friendly Health Systems (Care) programs and initiatives started by The John A. Hartford Foundation and the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI), in partnership with the American Hospital Association (AHA) and … Read more

Senior Housing and Care M&A at Record Level

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Mergers and acquisitions activity in the seniors housing and care sector set a new quarterly record with 183 publicly announced transactions in the second quarter of 2024, as reported by LevinPro LTC. This represents a 21% increase over the 151 transactions from the first quarter of 2024, and a 49% rise compared to the 123 … Read more

Hospice Fraud and Abuse Front and Center

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Since I started this site, a topical area that has been a constant for me is hospice and in particular, fraud and abuse. Recent cases have again put Hospice fraud and abuse, front and center. Thematically, the cases are different and the same in so much that they involve improper billing of hospice cases to … Read more

Private Equity Investment in Nursing Home Sector Generates Regulatory Scrutiny

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Private equity investment in the nursing home and assisted living sector (other post-acute as well) continues to be a focus of regulatory activity in Congress.  This is despite private equity investment in the nursing home sector to be involve about 5% of facilities. Home health has seen an increasing investment interest as well from private … Read more