the missouri smp empowering seniors to prevent healthcare fraud
DESCRIPTION
The Missouri SMP Empowering Seniors to Prevent Healthcare Fraud. SMP’s. Department of Health and Human Services Administration on Aging. Goals of The Missouri SMP. Train SMP Specialists Educate and counsel older adults, their families and the community on Medicare/Medicaid fraud and abuse. - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
The Missouri SMPEmpowering Seniors to Prevent Healthcare Fraud
Department of Health and Human Services
Administration on Aging
SMP’s
Goals of The Missouri SMP
Train SMP Specialists
Educate and counsel older adults, their families and the community on Medicare/Medicaid fraud and abuse
SMP Specialists
Volunteers
2 day training
Provide education, advocacy, and counselling to individuals, their families and the general public
Services Provided by SMP’s - Free of Charge
Screening for possible fraud and abuse of the Medicare/Medicaid programs
Billing assistance and appeals process
Explanation of coverage
Policy Comparisons
Senior Fraud Coalition
Missouri Attorney General’s Office – Consumer Fraud, Elder Abuse and Neglect, Identity Theft, Medicaid Fraud
Partnership
Missouri Alliance of Area Agencies on Aging – Regional
Coordinators– SMP Specialists
Most recent-$60 billion lost annually
($6.8 million/hr)
Estimate of Loss to Fraud and Abuse
Effects of Fraud to Beneficiaries
Diminishes the quality of treatment beneficiaries may receive.
Effects of Fraud to Caregivers
Decreases funding available for important programs
Difficult for honest providers to compete with dishonest providers
Effects of Fraud to Taxpayers
Raises taxes
Raises health insurance premiums
Raises health insurance deductibles
Raises administrative costs
Violators Can Include
•Organized crime
•A doctor or provider
•Durable medical equipment suppliers
•Medicare beneficiaries
•Any individual or business
•Insurance Companies
Fraud
Fraud occurs when an individual or organization deliberately deceives others in order to gain some sort of unauthorized benefit.
Abuse
Abuse occurs when providers supply services or products that are medically unnecessary or that do not meet professional standards.
Abuse Can Lead to Fraud
When a provider continues to abuse regulations after warnings, it can become fraud.
Gang Visits
A provider visits a nursing home, briefly walks through the facility without rendering any definable service to individual patients, but bills Medicare for 20 nursing home visits.
Diagnosis Fixing
This happens when a doctor states that a patient has an illness or condition that he does not have in order to receive payment from Medicare or Medicaid.
Music Therapy
Some music therapy is legitimate although Medicare rarely pays for it.
Playing a boom box in the dining hall of a facility and billing Medicare for individual music therapy sessions is not legitimate.
Non-Provided Services
Most common complaint
A physician pled guilty to charges of Medicare fraud related to submitting false claims for house calls. Claims were submitted for persons who had died before the date of claimed services, persons living in other states, persons who were incarcerated, etc.
Altered Claim Forms
When orders came in to a DME (Durable Medical Equipment) company and the orders were shipped out, the owner would add items to the invoices before billing.
Duplicate Billings
Simply billing twice
for the same service
Kickbacks or Bribes
For example:
Paying a fee to a physician for each patient care plan certified by the physician on behalf of the home health agency.
Use of Another Person’s Card
Some beneficiaries will loan their card to an uninsured person to use or sell the use of the number.
Upcoding
This is a statement that the service provided was more complicated than it really was.
Unnecessary Services
Medicare will only pay if the services are actually needed. For example: Home health services are only needed if the patient is homebound.
Unbundling
Billing for a service in parts than as a whole, such as billing for a wheelchair as though you are ordering parts rather than for the wheelchair.
How Do We Make a Difference?
Be a Smart Consumer
Avoid offers of “free medical tests in exchange for a peek at your Medicare card”.
Remember that Medicare does not offer “free services” nor does it employ “Medicare Salespeople” or “doctors who make house-calls”.
Beware of advertising that promises Medicare will pay for certain care or devices.
Smart Consumer Tips
Always use your Medicare card whenever you receive care and/or supplies.
Do not give out your Social Security or Medicare number
over the phone to anyone.
Review your Explanation of Benefits or Medicare Summary Notice. Look at the type and the number of services provided. Also, review the dates of services billed.
Always count your medication to make sure you received the amount prescribed.
Ask Questions If...
You do not understand the charges.
You did not receive the service billed.
You feel that Medicare has paid the provider for more services than you received.
You feel that Medicare has paid the provider for services that were not needed.
Who Can I Contact?
The Missouri SMP
660-747-5447
1-888-515-6565, Toll-free
This document was supported, in part, by grant number 90-MP-0060 from the Administration on Aging, Department of Health & Human Services. Grantees undertaking projects under government sponsorship are encouraged to express freely their findings & conclusions. Points of view or opinions do not therefore necessarily represent official Administration on Aging policy.