AAHomecare spreads anti-fraud message
By HME News Staff
Updated Sun April 26, 2009
ARLINGTON, Va. -- AAHomecare kept its anti-fraud plan front and center last week, submitting a statement in support of efforts to reduce Medicare fraud, waste and abuse.
On Wednesday, the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Subcommittee on Federal Financial Management, Government Information, Federal Services, and International Security, held a hearing on fraud.
"This is a signal to Congress and the administration that nobody is more serious about stopping fraud than the HME sector," said Michael Reinemer, AAHomecare vice president, communications and policy. "One of our goals is to be at the table when bills that address Medicare fraud come up."
It appears AAHomecare's message is being heard, said Walt Gorski, vice president of government affairs for AAHomecare.
"We are finding others, such as the OIG, are starting to pick up on some of these issues," said Gorski. "At the hearing last week they clearly were raising issues such as real time auditing and additional monitoring of new providers."
Other key points in AAHomecare's 13-point plan include site inspections for all new HME providers, a six-month trial period for new providers; and the establishment of an anti-fraud office.
"That a very small segment continues to give HME providers a black eye is unacceptable," said Gorski. "We want to be on the ground floor of the issue with the most appropriate ideas to stem fraud and prevent it from happening to begin with."
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