In LA, the average length of stay is more than three months, and, in many hospices, patients never die, with court records showing hospices billing the federal government for 18 months and more. He explained how the scam works:
Recruiters go to shopping centers and senior centers to sign up patients, promising them walkers, a month's supply of nutritional drinks, cash and weekly visits in exchange for a Medicare number. Recruiters then sell that "benny" or beneficiary's Medicare number to a provider for a $1,000 to $3,000 and receive a cut for every month the senior stays on their rolls. Hospice enrollees are supposed to have a terminal illness or life expectancy of six months or less. But frequently hospice owners treat patients like trading cards, moving them from one provider to another if they stay too long, which raises a red flag with auditors. IN THE U.S., MORE THAN 50% OF HOSPICE PATIENTS DIE WITHIN 18 DAYS OR LESS. IN LA, THE AVERAGE LENGTH OF STAY IS MORE THAN THREE MONTHS, AND, IN MANY HOSPICES, PATIENTS NEVER DIE, WITH COURT RECORDS SHOWING HOSPICES BILLING THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT FOR 18 MONTHS AND MORE. In LA, a hospice is paid by the federal government $260 a day for each day a senior is under its care. Hospices can fraudulently obtain more money by "upcoding" and "unbundling" procedures to inflate invoices.
