Bloomberg: Hospices Dump Patients While Escaping Multimillion-Dollar Taxpayer Refunds
Lois Armstrong and David Daucher closed their for-profit hospice in October to get out from under more than $27 million in refunds it owed the federal Medicare program, they said. The same week, they opened a new hospice with new owners. ... The demise of Sojourn Care, and the creation of its successor, RoseRock Healthcare, illustrate how hundreds of hospices across the U.S. exploit quirks in the Medicare payment system that yield higher reimbursements -- with results that can hurt taxpayers and patients, said Tulsa physician Sandra Dimmitt (Waldman, 2/3).