California’s lax oversight of its hospice system has led to widespread fraud in Los Angeles County within the rapidly growing industry of end-of-life care, potentially putting patients at risk of harm in their final days, according to a report made public yesterday, the Associated Press reported. State auditors estimate that hospice agencies in the nation’s most populous county, where the facilities are proliferating, likely overbilled Medicare by $105 million in 2019 alone. The report found the California Department of Public Health isn’t rigorous enough in vetting hospice agencies applying for state licenses and then doesn’t adequately follow-up on investigations of suspected fraud, Michael Tilden, the acting state auditor, wrote in a letter to Gov. Gavin Newsom and California legislators. “Without regulations to guide its oversight, its initial licensing site visits and ongoing monitoring do not adequately safeguard patient care or prevent fraud. Its investigation of complaints involving hospice agencies is often incomplete and slow, which increases the risk that patients may receive substandard care or that hospice agencies may engage in fraudulent activity,” Tilden wrote.
