IE Business Daily Business news for the Inland Empire.
Fourteen people have been arrested and charged in connection with an alleged scheme to steal more than $4.2 million from the federal Medicare and state Medi-Cal programs.
The scam involved enrolling people who were not terminally ill in two San Bernardino County hospice programs, New Hope Hospice, Inc. and Sterling Hospice Care, Inc., state Attorney General Rob Bonta said Thursday.
Each defendant faces multiple felony counts, including conspiracy to commit insurance fraud, insurance fraud, grand theft, and fraudulent insurance claims. Some also face charges related to identity theft, money laundering, and tax evasion.
Two additional defendants remain at large.
“End-of-life care is a difficult process for families to endure, and patients should be able to trust that their hospice providers are acting in good faith,” Bonta said during a news conference in front of the San Bernardino Count Superior Courthouse in Rancho Cucamonga. “The crimes allegedly committed by the defendants against their patients, Medicare, and our state’s Medi-Cal program will not be tolerated. My office is committed to protecting the well-being of Californians and prosecuting those who abuse the financial integrity of our healthcare system.”
All charged could face up to 27 years in prison.
Investigators allege that, from 2015 to 2021, the defendants billed Medicare and Medi-Cal for millions of dollars. The scam reportedly involved paying illegal kickbacks to recruit patients for hospice care who were not dying; putting people in hospice without their knowledge; misleading patients about what treatment they would receive and billing patients with one company, then shifting them to another company avoid detection, according to a statement released by the attorney general’s office.
