OIG work plan targets SNF therapy billing, background checks
By
Nov 13, 2015
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General will take aim at the payment system for skilled nursing facilities as part of its Fiscal Year 2016 Work Plan.
SNFist practice driven out of business by False Claims allegations must face trial
By
Kimberly Marselas
Sep 28, 2023
A once well-regarded but now-shuttered physician practice must face trial in a False Claims Act case alleging it overbilled for skilled nursing care, a federal judge ruled this week.
OIG calls for crackdown
By
James M. Berklan
Nov 05, 2015
The government has renewed criticism of provider billing methods for therapy and says it will be re-evaluating the entire process.
Medicare fraud case against SavaSeniorCare rolls on
By
Oct 03, 2016
A lawsuit that accuses one of the nation’s largest nursing facility operators of overbilling Medicare for unnecessary therapy services will proceed, a federal court has ruled, despite the company’s...
DOJ forces observation stay showdown
By
James M. Berklan
Sep 01, 2014
Hospitals have been cast in a harsh light by long-term care advocates recently for allegedly over-using “observation stay” status. The practice can ultimately deny some patients subsequent...
Largest US hospital chain to pay $98 million in observation stay case
By
Tim Mullaney
Aug 06, 2014
The nation’s largest hospital organization has agreed to a $98 million settlement to resolve charges that it overbilled by admitting individuals as inpatients rather than keeping them under observation,...
Nursing home podiatrist admits overbilling ‘thousands’ of times after clipping toenails
By
Tim Mullaney
Jan 16, 2015
A Missouri podiatrist has agreed to pay nearly $1 million for repeatedly billing for more complex services after clipping nursing home residents’ toenails, federal authorities recently announced....
Feds name Life Care Centers CEO in False Claims Act suit
By
Aug 17, 2015
Life Care Centers founder and CEO Forrest Preston has been named by federal prosecutors in an amended False Claims Act lawsuit against the company, claiming he benefitted from alleged Medicare overbilling.
HealthEssentials CEO agrees to $1 million settlement in False Claims suit
By
Tim Mullaney
Jan 14, 2014
Michael Barr, who co-founded the company now known as Kindred Healthcare, has agreed to pay $1 million in a settlement over Medicare fraud charges, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Monday.
Providers fire back on therapy billing
By
Oct 09, 2015
The current payment system for nursing home therapy is “flawed,” wrote American Health Care Association/National Center for Assisted Living President and CEO Mark Parkinson in a letter to the...