Medicare Fraud

So, it finally happened! Jay Weaver, the Miami Herald journalist who uncovered many Medicare fraud issues in South Florida, wrote another excellent article reporting that CMS is now being forced to revamp its payment policy. In his latest article http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/09/30/v-print/1849528/medicares-new-order-first-weigh.html he emphasizes that:

"An anti-fraud provision, tucked into the Small Business Lending Act that became law Monday, would force Medicare to end its 45-year-old policy of paying claims quickly without verifying them. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which pays out $500 billion yearly for elderly and disabled Americans, would have to adopt new billing software with ``predictive modeling'' by next year. Such analytical technology enables the credit card industry to detect questionable bills for, say, a flat-screen TV purchased outside a cardholder's immediate area so that companies can notify the customer and stop payment if fraud is a factor.The cost of rolling out the new billing technology would reach an estimated $930 million over the next decade but it may reduce or prevent paying one of every $7 to fraudulent claimants.
Furthermore, the new Affordable Care Act includes tougher penalties for offenders, expanded administrative powers for Medicare and $350 million to combat healthcare corruption over the next decade."

Sen. George LeMieux, R-Florida, who sponsored the anti-fraud bill, said he has been frustrated watching Medicare continue to pay billions to dubious healthcare providers for unnecessary or bogus services. But Senator LeMieux supports the Republican Party platform to repeal the same Affordable Care Act which funds such anti-fraud activities! Does he really believe that the voters are that stupid, or short-term memory challenged, to forget his election antics?
Its time that politicians start collaborating and cooperating to solve the real problems we are facing and to focus on stopping the Medicare fraud gravy train.
But maybe I am too naive to believe that politicians are capable to act and behave rationally.

Yours
Bernd