Stronger Measures Needed to Curb Fraud by Medical Device Suppliers

Fraud and abuse from Medicare suppliers remains a problem for Medicare and Medicaid, says the Office of Inspector General (OIG) in Washington. In an examination that divided the suppliers into high, medium and low-risk categories, OIG found that 26% of the high and medium-risk suppliers and 2% of the low-risk suppliers had been placed on prepayment claims review or had their billing privileges revoked. Other suppliers had failed to provide necessary management information. Particularly egregious were the enrolled suppliers who had left out information about criminal histories or adverse legal action.

To combat and prevent the risk from dishonest and harmful suppliers, OIG recommends earlier and more frequent post-enrollment site visits to the suppliers, as well as appropriate follow-up regarding missing information on applications. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) say they have heeded this advice and have begun to implement measures that will lead to increased overall security.

Hopefully, increased action on the part of CMS will both rid the system of fraudulent suppliers and deter potential suppliers from following in the footsteps of unchecked wrongdoers. Ethical practices from medical suppliers should not only be hoped for, but expected. Resources are available in California to locate and combat fraudulent healthcare services.

Whistleblower Records Shed Light On BNY Mellon Case

        [Article submitted by Justin Victor of Grant & Eisenhofer]

Whistleblower Grant Wilson has aided a lawsuit against and federal investigation into the Bank of New York Mellon Corp for fraudulent practices. According to Wilson, the bank provided and then charged fictitious foreign-currency costs for pension funds. Following his accusations and information, Virginia, Florida, and New York, and the Department of Justice have sued BNY Mellon for improperly charging state and local pension funds for foreign exchange. According to the New York Attorney General, BNY Mellon made a $2 billion profit from this activity over the past decade.

A bank spokesperson claims that the information is false and taken out of context, yet the scale and multiplicity of the lawsuits and investigations suggest otherwise. Several attorneys working on the case – including Harry Markopolos who is known for warning about Bernard Madoff’s fraudulent operations – cite the centrality of Wilson’s aid and status as a whistleblower; Wilson, a BNY employee, continued to work with the bank while providing information to the legal investigators. With almost 50,000 employees, $1.2 in assets under management and $25.5 trillion under custody and administration, BNY is the largest deposit bank in the world. Even so, it was the work of one individual that brought light to the events and information to spur the ongoing investigations and lawsuits.

The alleged practices of the Bank of New York constitute financial abuse. The Evans Law Firm handles banking fraud and other financial abuse cases in California.

Ohio Jewish Retirement Community Opens Elder Abuse Shelter
JTA

The Cedar Village Retirement Community in Mason, Ohio has opened the state’s first shelter for abused elderly. This shelter will allow abused seniors a stay of 90-120 days with access to medical care as well as to the retirement community’s activities. The shelter is called the Shalom Center for Elder Abuse Prevention opened on January 1, 2012.

This endeavor is not only exceptional as a service provided to the elderly, but it is also unique as a community-based response to elder abuse. The center does not treat the abused elderly as singled-out victims, but invites them to participate in the retirement community’s activities and provides access to medical care. The service is available to seniors from Hamilton, Warren, Butler, and Clermont Counties in Ohio. For information on elder abuse prevention and litigation in California, contact the Evans Law Firm for a free consultation.

Elder Abuse Pair Prepare for Hearing, Jury Trial in Bakersfield
Kern Valley Sun

In Kern County, 30-year-old Joseph McCoy and his 54-year-old mother Darlene Green took part in a Readiness Hearing at which they faced charges of causing harm or death to an elderly person. The person in question was Margaret Gray, Green’s mother and McCoy’s grandmother, who died on April 1, 2011.

On February 11, 2011 paramedics found Gray in her home suffering from bed sores and grade four ulcers, lying in her own bodily fluids with areas of her skin stuck to her bed sheets. Gray was then taken to the Kern Valley Hospital and treated in the emergency room for what the director, Dr. Manual Sacapano, called “the worst case of elder abuse I have ever seen.” Two months later, Gray died from cardio respiratory arrest, sepsis, and Alzheimer’s disease.

McCoy had been Gray’s primary caregiver since 1999. He and his mother are being held at the Lerdo pre-trial facility.

Deceptively passive in nature, neglect is one of the most harmful forms of elder abuse. To be designated a primary caregiver is to take on moral and legal responsibility for the healthcare and wellbeing of the elderly citizen. This and other tragic cases highlight the urgent necessity for legal recourse against caregiver abuse. With legal action, we can prevent further abuses and promote proper methods to ensure safety and comfort of the elderly. The Evans Law Firm in San Francisco, California represents elder victims of neglect and other physical and financial abuse.