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Medicare Paid $47 Billion In Suspect Claims
A federal report suggests that more than 10 percent of Medicare claims for the first part of 2009 are suspect.
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7 Comments 
WASHINGTON (November 15, 2009)—As much as 12.4 percent of Medicare claims involving some 47 billion in taxpayer money are suspect, a government report says.
The number would represent a more than threefold increase over the roughly 4 percent reported under the Bush administration from 2005-2008 in the fee-for-service program.
The difference, however, could be attributed to a new, more comprehensive method of counting questionable claims, which includes both fee-for-service and managed care.
Excerpts of the government report make clear that "aggressive actions" to rid Medicare of fraud haven't made a dent.
In recent years, suspect claims have included Medicare prescriptions from doctors who were dead and requests for payment for diabetic shoes for leg amputees.
The federal report suggests reducing improper payments in the fee-for-service program to 9.5 percent by next year, a savings of roughly $9.7 billion.
Latest Comments
Sorry, I meant to say Forty-seven BILLION dollars of taxpayer money & not 47 million dollars in my previous post!
Sorry, Citizen, but my forty-plus years of experience owning & operating SUCCESSFUL businesses tells me that the $47 million dollars saved by eliminating fraud, abuse & waste will more than adequately pay the salaries of new hires to detect that fraud & abuse. It is called VISION! Actions have consequences. "Work smarter, not harder" is great, but you have to be able to VISUALZE the results. Improvise if you have to, better utilize what resources already on hand, but also have an idea of the consequences of actions. A business course can only suggest ideas that might work--it is up to you to know what will work in your own circumstances. I do know the unemployment office employees are very overworked!
It is apparent Observer that you have no business experience. You can't just go out and hire more people when work loads increase without an increase in profits. The only way to pay for the extra salaries, benefits, office space, business materials (ie computers and desk and office supplies) is to increase profit. Since the medicare/medicaid system is non-profit and runs off of goverment funds the only way to hire more people is to increase taxes. This group already has an operating budget almost equal to the benefits they pay out. It is not logical for "overhead" to be more than the benefits. What this department needs is better computing that will pick up on fraud so that less human intervention is needed to find it. Have you ever heard the term "work smarter not harder" this is what needs to happen. Why don't you go ask a few professors at the Mays Business School if more employees are the answer. BTW have you been to a goverment office lately and seen anyone that was overworked???
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