Are Hospice Fraud cases challenging?
Yes, especially if they are based on allegations of defrauding Medicare by inappropriately admitting non-terminal patients to hospice service. This is because a hospice that has engaged in this practice often has paperwork in the patients’ charts which appear to justify the admissions. This includes certifications from physicians saying the patients are terminally ill and not expected to live for 6 months. The challenge is proving that the hospice operators knew these certifications were false at the time they were made.
However, there still have been successful hospice fraud cases. And, a settlement involving one was announced on March 13, 2014. Hospice Compassus, which previously operated in Alabama, agreed to pay the United States $3.92 million to settle two qui tam complaints filed under the False Claims Act. The two relators who filed the suits against Hospice Compassus will receive $712,000.
Read more http://www.justice.gov/usao/aln/News/March%202014/13%20Mar,%202014%20Hospice.html
