Kaiser Northwest Region Hospice self-disclosed to the Inspector General for Health and Human Services that it billed Medicare for patients before obtaining written certifications of terminal illness, according to DoJ. As a result of the disclosure, Kaiser and related entites Kaiser Sunnyside Medical Center, Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of the Northwest and Northwest Permanente agreed to pay $1,830,322.41 to settle False Claims Act liability.

“By requiring that health care providers comply with Medicare’s standards, we ensure that beneficiaries receive hospice care that is medically necessary and meets appropriate medical standards,” — Tony West, Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Civil Division

Earlier this year, Frohsin & Barger settled the country’s largest Medicare Hospice fraud lawsuit under the federal False Claims Act, recovering nearly $25 million in taxpayer dollars in what the Inspector General has reported as one of the top Medicare fraud cases of 2009.

To report Medicare Hospice fraud, contact Frohsin & Barger.