A Massachusetts-based home health company and its owners will pay millions of dollars to resolve allegations that they falsely billed the state’s Medicaid program, MassHealth. The home health company is Altranais Home Care LLC, located in Lowell. Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey announced Friday that the company and owners Constant Ogutt and Shakira Lubega will […]
Category: Fraud
Two Pittsburgh residents — and home health employees — have pleaded guilty in federal court to one count each of conspiracy to defraud the Pennsylvania Medicaid program and health care fraud. United States Attorney Scott Brady announced the guilty pleas last week. Between 2011 and 2017, both Terra Dean and Larita Walls admitted they played […]
The 2019 fiscal year concluded with the Department of Justice (DOJ) bringing in $2.6 billion in recoveries involving health care fraud and false claims. Home health-related fraud was a large part of these efforts. This marks the 10th consecutive year that the department’s civil health care fraud settlements and judgments have exceeded $2 billion. The […]
Federal watchdogs have tied a bow on a key part of one of the largest Medicare fraud schemes in history. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida announced Friday that Rodolfo Pichardo and Marta Pichardo — husband and wife — were each sentenced to several years in prison for their roles building […]
In September, the owner and operator of an Atlanta-based in-home care provider pleaded guilty to defrauding Medicaid in a $1.2 million scheme. Shortly before that, a Boston-based in-home provider agreed to pay $1.95 million in a settlement to resolve allegations that it submitted Medicaid claims without physician authorization in August. These cases are both part […]
Federal watchdogs and health care policymakers are signaling plans to ramp up oversight of fraud, waste and abuse in 2020, especially when it comes to home health and hospice agencies. While the efforts are, in part, linked to the misuse of Medicare dollars by bad actors, they’re also simply a result of the U.S. health […]
A Texas-based physician has been found guilty for taking part in a $16 million Medicare scheme. On Oct. 7, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that, after a six-day trial, Dr. Yolanda Hamilton was convicted of a single count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and conspiracy to solicit and receive health care […]
A recent hospice-related court ruling may impact how federal watchdogs and whistleblowers go after home health agencies moving forward. Last month, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit issued its long-anticipated decision in United States vs. AseraCare, a winding legal battle involving false claims allegations dating back to 2008. Hospice companies, other Medicare-reimbursed […]
A New York-based home care agency is being placed under the microscope for its treatment of immigrant workers. Allcare Homecare Agency Inc. allegedly threatened to report immigrant workers to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents when they complained about unpaid wages, according to a Friday statement from the New York State Attorney General’s Office. As […]
Home Health Provider Charged in Largest Ever Cash-for-Patient Scheme in NorCal The Bay Area’s largest home health care provider has been charged by federal prosecutors with paying doctors in a Medicare kickback scheme involving millions of dollars of payments in cash, Warriors tickets, designer handbags and more. Amity Home Health Care paid kickbacks to doctors, […]
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