The Obama Administration Uncovers $430 million in Medicare Fraud in Single Bust archived

I know 99% of us do not need another reason to vote for Obama in November, but just in case you were feeling a little undecided after the debates:

"Ninety-one people including doctors, nurses and other medical professionals were charged criminally after an investigation of Medicare fraud that involved $430 million in false billing in seven cities, officials said on Thursday.

It was the government’s second big raid in recent months after a similar investigation in May involving $452 million in possible fraud in Medicare, the health program for the elderly and disabled.

The accusations include billing the government for unnecessary ambulance rides in California, writing prescriptions for patients in Dallas who did not qualify for them and paying kickbacks like food and cigarettes to patients in Houston if they attended programs for which a hospital could bill.

The investigation is part of an effort by the Obama administration to find health care savings."

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/05/business/medicare-fraud-charged-against-91.html?src=recg

"Arrests were made in Houston, Dallas, Brooklyn, Baton Rouge, Chicago, Los Angeles and Miami. The largest crackdown occurred in South Florida where 33 people were rounded up and charged in connection with health care fraud cases totaling more than $230 million. In Texas, the president of Riverside General Hospital in Houston and his son were also charged.

Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius added that new provisions in President Barack Obama's Affordable Care Act made it more difficult for fraud to be committed.

This fraud sweep is the latest in a series of raids conducted since 2007 by the strike force. Over the past five years 1,480 suspects have been arrested in Medicare fraud cases totaling $4.8 billion dollars."

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57526201/feds-charge-91-in-massive-medicare-fraud-scheme/

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FWIW, that's $130 million dollars more than the government spends on PBS.

Eat it Romney.

Yea Romney. Let's see you create a task force the year before you become president that saves the taxpayers 4.8 billion dollars in 5 years. Way to go Obama. What foresight and vision.

Obama cut $430 million in Medicare spending.

Death panels!

This fraud sweep is the latest in a series of raids conducted since 2007 by the strike force.

I blame Bush.

I don't blame or credit any president. I doubt either one had anything to do with this.

Good job to the bureaucrats everyone loves to lambaste. Who do their job no matter who is at the top of the ladder.

Yeah, great. The government-run health program is riddled with fraud and mis-management, and this bust only provides further proof, as if any is needed. And our current president wants to hand over the entire health care process to government? What?

Hilarious that this could be seen as anything other than a condemnation of government run healthcare. Only here in the bubble I guess.

Romney need not "eat it", but he should certainly digest the message and regurgitate it all over Obama at the next debate. "So, congratulations on uncovering $4.8B in medicare fraud. How much of that money do you expect to get back for the taxpayers? And assumining this is just the tip of the iceberg, which it most certainly is, how much more do you think has been stolen from the American taxpayers through the government health system over the years?. Given this not-so-shocking revelation, why do you think the government should have more responsibility safefguarding Americans' health care dollars?"

Can they get the $ back?

ice said:

Yeah, great. The government-run health program is riddled with fraud and mis-management, and this bust only provides further proof, as if any is needed. And our current president wants to hand over the entire health care process to government? What?

Hilarious that this could be seen as anything other than a condemnation of government run healthcare. Only here in the bubble I guess.

...

Even with the fraud (which we all know doesn't exist in the private sector, right?) Medicare is still about 10 times more efficient than private insurance.

I trust private management, answerable to shareholders, to be better at uncovering and prosecuting fraud more than I trust government, "answerable" to us suckers called the taxpayers.

Even with the fraud, Medicare is still about 10 times more efficient than private insurance.

eta: those private companies you're so trusting of are COMMITTING the fraud.

http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2009/08/03/gvsd0804.htm

Researchers pointed to a January settlement by UnitedHealth Group, totaling $450 million, over allegations that the insurance firm manipulated out-of-network prices for physician services, resulting in an estimated 10% to 28% increase in costs. The Litigation Center of the American Medical Association and State Medical Societies, along with other physician organizations, had sued United, which denied any wrongdoing.

ice said:

I trust private management, answerable to shareholders, to be better at uncovering and prosecuting fraud more than I trust government, "answerable" to us suckers called the taxpayers.

Really?

Two words: "Bernie Madoff".

Entirely private. Entirely defrauded.

ice said:

Yeah, great. The government-run health program is riddled with fraud and mis-management, and this bust only provides further proof, as if any is needed. And our current president wants to hand over the entire health care process to government? What?

Hilarious that this could be seen as anything other than a condemnation of government run healthcare. Only here in the bubble I guess.

Romney need not "eat it", but he should certainly digest the message and regurgitate it all over Obama at the next debate. "So, congratulations on uncovering $4.8B in medicare fraud. How much of that money do you expect to get back for the taxpayers? And assumining this is just the tip of the iceberg, which it most certainly is, how much more do you think has been stolen from the American taxpayers through the government health system over the years?. Given this not-so-shocking revelation, why do you think the government should have more responsibility safefguarding Americans' health care dollars?"

Free free to not use Medicare when you reach the age.

ice is blaming the victim.

tom said:

ice is blaming the victim.

Why not? Romney blames 47% of Americans for not choosing their parents as well as he chose his.

He is permanently scarred because his parent named him Willard.

Was that the name of their oil tanker?

ice said:

I trust private management, answerable to shareholders, to be better at uncovering and prosecuting fraud more than I trust government, "answerable" to us suckers called the taxpayers.

The fraud is in the middle management who exist only to shuffle paper and skim off the top.

nohero said:

ice said:

I trust private management, answerable to shareholders, to be better at uncovering and prosecuting fraud more than I trust government, "answerable" to us suckers called the taxpayers.

Really?

Two words: "Bernie Madoff".

Entirely private. Entirely defrauded.

Ooh, ooh, my turn!!!
- Enron
- Adelphia
- Duke Energy
- Global Crossing
- Quest
- Tyco
- Worldcom
- Merrill Lynch
- Lehman Brothers
- Nortel
- AIG

drummerboy said:

eta: those private companies you're so trusting of are COMMITTING the fraud.

This point can't be stressed enough. Private companies committed massive fraud against the government. The government investigated, and uncovered the fraud.

Ice trusts the fraudsters more than the law enforcers. Why is that?

It's actually criminal, it's theft. But they are rarely prosecuted as criminals. When rich people steal we usually only ask them to put it back if we catch them. Those of you who have done expected value calculations can figure out whether it is rational for the wealthy to steal all the time (hint: it is)

'cause he's (ice) is confoozled.

Here is a thought that I've always had when it comes to white collar crime. If the average salary in the US is 50,000 per year when you committed the crime, then you divide the amount that you stole by that rate and that is the number of years that you serve before being eligible for parole.

There is too much incentive to steal millions when you know the penalties are so light.