by bvernia | November 12th, 2009
DOJ announced on November 12 a settlement with several Kaiser subsidiaries after the companies disclosed failing to obtain certifications of terminal illness at its Kaiser Northwest Region Hospice in Oregon. According to DOJ’s press release:
Medicare hospice care providers like Kaiser Northwest Region Hospice must obtain written certifications of terminal illness for each hospice beneficiary’s initial certification period (the first 90 days of care) from the medical director of the hospice and the individual beneficiary’s attending physician, if the beneficiary has one. Medicare requires a hospice to obtain these certifications prior to billing Medicare in order to help ensure that hospice care is medically necessary.
In June 2005, Kaiser NW submitted a report to the Department of Health and Human Service’s Office of Inspector General disclosing that between October 2000 and March 2004, there were instances in which Kaiser NW did not obtain written certifications of terminal illness for hospice beneficiaries prior to billing Medicare for the beneficiaries’ initial certification period.
