by Ben Vernia | October 28th, 2014
On October 27, the United States Attorney for the Western District of Michigan announced that a Michigan-based home health agency, had agreed to pay $57,000 to settle civil charges, initially brought by a whistleblower, that the company submitted false claims to federal health care programs. According to the U.S. Attorney’s press release:
Advanced Professional Home Health Care, a home health agency based in Troy, with offices in Grand Rapids and Flint, has entered into an agreement with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Michigan that requires the agency to pay $57,000 and to implement a compliance program relating to its documentation of physician orders for home health services. The settlement resolves allegations that Advanced Professional Home Health Care violated the False Claims Act by altering physician signature dates and other information on certain physician orders for home health care services that the government examined during its investigation.
Under the terms of the settlement agreement, Advanced Professional Home Health Care has agreed to implement and maintain a compliance program for at least two years. This compliance program requires the company to provide training to its staff regarding medical records and documentation requirements, including those relating to signature and retention requirements for home health care orders. In addition, the company is required to hire an independent firm to perform unscheduled and unannounced reviews for each of the next two years to evaluate the company’s physician orders for home health care services and its billings, claims, and reimbursements based on these orders.
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The Department of Justice has not yet announced the share of the settlement the relator will receive.
