FRAUD ALERT
Friday, July 25, 2014
Please share this Fraud Alert
with colleagues, consumers,
or other professionals in your
area. If you have any
questions about the Illinois
SMP program, or to receive
these Fraud Alerts directly,
please contact Jason
Echols, Healthcare
Consumer Protection
Coordinator at AgeOptions.
This document was supported in
part by a grant (No. 90MP0163 &
90SP0061) from the
Administration on Aging (AoA),
Administration for Community
Living (ACL), U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services
(DHHS). Grantees carrying out
projects under government
sponsorship are encouraged to
express freely their findings and
conclusions. Therefore, points of
view or opinions do not necessarily
represent official AoA, ACL, or
DHHS policy.
Fraud In The News
The following are current
news articles about health
care and fraud issues.
Health Care Fraud:
1. “How to Protect Your
Medicare Card from
Identity Theft” (Huffington
Post):
http://www.huffingtonpost.
com/jim-t-miller/how-toprotect-your-medicarecard-from-identitytheft_b_5536728.html
Dear SMP readers,
This week’s Fraud Alert contains news of a recent indictment in Illinois
for home health fraud and kickbacks and two congressional hearings
on health care fraud and the grandparent scam.
Have a great week!
What you will find in this week’s Fraud Alert
 Skokie Couple & Chicago Man Charged with Home Health Fraud
 OIG Testifies to Congress on Efforts to Stop Medicare Fraud
 The “Grandparent Scam” Goes to Washington: Senate Hearing
Skokie Couple & Chicago Man Charged with Home Health Fraud
A married couple from Skokie, Illinois and a Chicago man were recently
indicted on health care fraud charges for their alleged role in a home
health fraud and kickback scheme as announced by the U.S.
Department of Justice (DOJ), U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services Office of Inspector General (HHS OIG), and the FBI. The
husband and wife own Medicose Home Health Care Service, which hired
physicians to provide in-home care. According to the indictment, the
home health company submitted claims for services never performed,
resulting in over $800,000 of improper Medicare payment. The couple
also allegedly paid $11,000 in kickbacks to a Chicago man for referral of
patients to them for home health. The man worked at a non-profit
organization that provided services to older adults and people with
disabilities. Read more about this indictment in the DOJ press release:
http://www.justice.gov/usao/iln/pr/chicago/2014/pr0715_01.html
An indictment is not evidence of guilt. The defendants are presumed
innocent and are entitled to a fair trial.
OIG Testifies to Congress on Efforts to Stop Medicare Fraud
Recently, Gary Cantrell, the Deputy Inspector General for Investigations
at the HHS OIG, testified before the House Committee on Energy and
Commerce. You can read his testimony, which includes current trends
the OIG is seeing and challenges they are facing in regards to fighting
health care fraud, at the following link:
http://oig.hhs.gov/testimony/docs/2014/cantrell_testimony_06252014.pdf
Consumer Fraud:
2. “E-ZPass to ID Theft?”
(AARP):
http://blog.aarp.org/2014/0
7/18/e-zpass-to-id-theft/
3. “4 Scams That Prey on
Your Patriotism” (AARP):
http://blog.aarp.org/2014/0
7/02/4-scams-that-preyon-your-patriotism/
4. “Home-Based Businesses:
Do You Really Need
These Services?” (FTC):
http://www.consumer.ftc.g
ov/blog/home-basedbusinesses-do-you-reallyneed-these-services
You can also watch video from the full House Committee hearing here:
http://energycommerce.house.gov/hearing/medicare-program-integrityscreening-out-errors-fraud-and-abuse
The “Grandparent Scam” Goes to Washington: Senate Hearing
While SMP focuses primarily on health care fraud, we often share
information and warnings about consumer scams. The Grandparent
Scam, where a scammer poses as a grandchild or other loved one in
trouble to scam older adults out of money, has been a frequent feature in
our Fraud Alert emails. This scam has been so prevalent that the U.S.
Special Committee on Aging recently held a hearing on this and other
phone scams called “Hanging Up on Phone Scams: Progress and
Potential Solutions to this Scourge.” You can read testimony from an
Ohio man who was scammed as well as FBI and Federal Trade
Commission (FTC) representatives on the Senate website:
http://www.aging.senate.gov/hearings/-hanging-up-on-phone-scamsprogress-and-potential-solutions-to-this-scourge (This webpage includes
video of the hearing, the video begins at the 25 minute mark.)
This hearing included submitted testimony from companies selling
money transfer cards about their efforts to prevent fraud. No matter what
companies or stores do to prevent fraud, consumers must continue to be
vigilant against scam artists. The AARP Fraud Watch Network provides
more information on the grandparents scam, this hearing, and tips for
how to not fall for these phone scams. Read more on the AARP website:
http://blog.aarp.org/2014/07/17/how-aarps-fraud-watch-network-canhelp-you/
Jason B. Echols, MSW, Health Care Consumer Protection Coordinator
AgeOptions
1048 Lake Street, Suite 300
Oak Park, IL 60301
phone (708)383-0258 fax (708)524-0870
jason.echols@ageoptions.org
ageoptions.org
AgeOptions, the Area Agency on Aging of Suburban Cook County, is
committed to improving the quality of life and maintaining the dignity of
older adults and those who care about them – through leadership and
support, community partnerships, comprehensive services, accurate
information and powerful advocacy.
Fraud Alerts contain information about current scams taking place in Illinois, announcements and updates
about programs or services related to health care and/or fraud protection, and links to news articles about
health care and fraud topics. Please forward any recommendations or announcements that you would like to
be included in a future Fraud Alert to jason.echols@ageoptions.org.