Hospice Companies Settle Whistleblower Suit for $6.1 Million
Hospice Care of Kansas LLC, based in Witchita, Kansas, and its parent company, Voyager HospiceCare, Inc. based in Fort Worth, Texas (collectively “HospiceCare”), have agreed to settle a whistleblower suit for $6.1 million. The qui tam, or whistleblower, action was initially brought in 2006 by Beverly Landis, a former nurse with Hospice Care of Kansas LLC.
Hospice providers are only entitled to Medicare funds for Medicare recipients with a prognosis of six months or less to live. When a Medicare recipient is admitted to hospice care, that patient is no longer entitled to receive medical treatment intended to cure his or her illness. Instead, patients in hospice receive care that is intended to relieve pain, symptoms and the stress of terminal illness.
The whistleblower alleged that, between January 2004 and December 2008, HospiceCare submitted claims to Medicare for ineligible hospice services in violation of the False Claims Act. Specifically, the whistleblower alleged that HospiceCare improperly paid clinical staff based on patient census and admissions, purposely delayed the discharge of patients who were later determined to have a prognosis of longer than six months to live, and instructed staff to purposely document patient conditions in a misleading way.
As her share of the settlement amount, the whistleblower will receive approximately $1.324 million as her reward, pursuant to the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act.
If you have any firsthand knowledge, information, or evidence related to any federal, state, county or city government fraud, you should speak with an experienced qui tam lawyer who can help you understand your legal rights and help you obtain the compensation you deserve.
If you have a claim, contact the Florida whistleblower attorneys at Rabin Kammerer Johnson for a free and confidential consultation by calling toll free at 877.915.4040.