Recently, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General (the OIG) released its work plan for 2015. The work plan provides stakeholders with a road map to the OIG's activities in the coming year as they relate to its enforcement priorities and issues it will review and evaluate during the year. This post is one in a series that will outline the OIG's activities, in 2015, for a specific industry sector – Hospice.
Hospices in Assisted Living
The OIG remains focused on what it believes are inappropriate hospice services being provided to certain types of geriatric patients. As a result, it will review the extent to which hospices serve Medicare beneficiaries who reside in assisted living facilities (ALFs). It is going to take a look at length of stay, levels of care received, and common terminal illnesses of beneficiaries who receive hospice care in ALFs.
Hospice General Inpatient Care
The OIG, in prior work, has suggested that the general inpatient care level of care is used inappropriately and too often. It is going to look at the appropriateness of hospices' general inpatient care claims and the content of election statements for hospice beneficiaries who receive general inpatient care. It will also review hospice medical records to address concerns that this level of hospice care is being misused.
Disclaimer: This Alert has been prepared and published for informational purposes only and is not offered, nor should be construed, as legal advice. For more information, please see the firm's full disclaimer.
