Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
This VA Employee Was Supposed To Counsel Families Of Kids With Spina Bifida. Instead Prosecutors Say He Pocketed Millions From Kickbacks.
The Daily Beast: Feds Say Former VA Employee Used Vets’ Ailing Kids To Scam Millions
A Department of Veterans Affairs employee used a network of shell companies to steal millions of dollars from a VA program to provide health services to children of veterans who are suffering from a debilitating spinal condition, federal prosecutors say. The Justice Department lodged 23 federal criminal charges late last year against Joseph Prince, a former Veterans Affairs employee who prosecutors say used his position to steer almost $20 million in taxpayer money to companies run by family members and associates. Those companies then provided huge kickbacks to Prince, his wife, and other family members, the government alleges. (Markay and Hughes, 7/18)
In other news —
ProPublica: Health Insurers Make It Easy For Scammers To Steal Millions. Who Pays? You.
There are a host of reasons health care costs are out-of-control and routinely top American’s list of financial worries, from unnecessary treatment and high prices to waste and fraud. Most people assume their insurance companies are tightly controlling their health care dollars. Insurers themselves boast of this on their websites.In 2017, private insurance spending hit $1.2 trillion, according to the federal government, yet no one tracks how much is lost to fraud. Some investigators and health care experts estimate that fraud eats up 10% of all health care spending, and they know schemes abound. (Allen, 7/19)
Sacramento Bee: Free DNA Test Medicare Scam Reported In OR, CA, KY, NE
Do-it-yourself DNA tests have taken off across the United States in recent years, but now officials are warning of scammers who promise free kits to steal victims’ private information and defraud health plans in California, Kentucky, Nebraska and beyond. Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum was the latest to warn the public of the scam on Thursday, saying multiple Medicare beneficiaries in the state have reported scammers victimizing them through telemarketing, health fairs and door-to-door pitches. (Gilmour, 7/18)
