Medicaid Fraud Demands Prevention, not Just Prosecution

Originally published by PennLive.

What would you do if someone told you they worked 36 hours per day?

If you were the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services, you’d go ahead and pay them—no questions asked.

That was one finding when federal and state prosecutors announced charges against 19 people and a Philadelphia home health agency for a scheme that bilked taxpayers out of $4 million in fraudulent Medicaid payments.

Along with invoices for more than 24 hours per day, aides billed for services never provided, including caregivers who were dead, imprisoned, or dealing drugs while logging round-the-clock shifts. One company’s owner reportedly shrugged it off as standard practice, claiming “everybody is doing this.”

The story is deplorable—but hardly shocking or new.

Read more at PennLive.