PharMerica, Kindred settle in Amgen kickback lawsuit
By
John Hall
Aug 24, 2015
PharMerica Corp. and Kindred Healthcare have agreed in principle to out-of-court settlements in a whistleblower suit that implicated the companies in alleged massive kickback schemes involving a popular...
Bundled post acute payment plan could cost SNFs
By
John Hall
May 21, 2015
Nursing homes’ loss would be home healthcare’s gain under a controversial plan that would create site-neutral payments for post-acute care.
Providers fuming after MedPAC calls for cancellation of Medicare pay raise
By
John Hall
May 21, 2015
The nursing home industry’s largest trade group is pushing back hard against MedPAC’s recommendation that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services forego its planned request for $500 million...
Court honors unsigned arbitration agreement
By
John Hall
May 18, 2015
Pennsylvania nursing home resident who sued for neglect was recently ordered by a federal judge to submit to binding arbitration instead, even though the document authorizing it was not signed by a facility...
Industry advocates hint new ‘threat’ in trade bill
By
John Hall
May 14, 2015
The ink is barely dry on the historic Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 and long-term care and other lobbyists are already voicing concerns about what ominous funding threat might come...
Smart cards would do little to curtail Medicare fraud: GAO
By
John Hall
Apr 28, 2015
Medicare beneficiary smart cards would have a limited impact on reducing fraud and could even introduce “new, more sophisticated fraud schemes,” a new report by the Government Accountability...
CMS reminds providers about new survey appeals process
By
John Hall
Apr 28, 2015
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services recently reminded state survey agency directors that it no longer will accept appeals through the U.S. mail from providers that disagree with actions imposed...
Colorado latest state to bungle Medicaid claims data: OIG
By
John Hall
Apr 16, 2015
Long-term care providers are struggling to satisfy new mandates over electronic reporting and medical records, and can expect more in the near future. But nothing can compare to the kind of information...
RAC beats CMS on payment lawsuit appeal
By
John Hall
Mar 16, 2015
A federal appeals court last week ruled that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services violated federal contracting regulations when it stretched out payment terms for recovery audit contractors.
Justice Department investigating Humana billing practices
By
John Hall
Feb 24, 2015
Humana Inc. reports that it is cooperating with a Department of Justice inquiry into whether it exaggerated the severity of elderly patients’ illnesses to generate higher Medicare reimbursements.