Fred Schulte of Kaiser Health News reports that UnitedHealth, the largest provider of Medicare Advantage plans–commercial insurers expected to deliver Medicare benefits–has been hiding enrollment fraud and other wrongdoings, according to a whistleblower’s claims in a recently unsealed lawsuit. By so doing, it was able to improperly collect almost $1.5 billion in Medicare bonus payments.
If UnitedHealth is found to have been engaged in fraud, what penalties will it incur? This is not the first fraud suit against UnitedHealth. UnitedHealth, among other insurers offering Medicare Advantage plans, has been charged with involvement in a range of behaviors to increase their revenues that may run afoul of the law. They face at least six cases brought under the Federal False Claims Act.
In May, the New York Times reported on a lawsuit filed by a former employee of UnitedHealth charging that the company was improperly making its members out to be sicker than they were in order to receive additional payments from Medicare. The Justice Department is investigating the matter and has said it intends to sue UnitedHealth.
The new whistleblower lawsuit alleges that UnitedHealth was aware that at least one of its agents was forging signatures on Medicare Advantage enrollment forms to make it appear that the company had more members than it actually did and generate more revenues. It says that another agent was offering kickbacks to get people to sign up for a Medicare Advantage plan.
UnitedHealth allegedly hid these activities and hundreds of member complaints filed against it in order to keep its high Medicare ratings, which we have previously reported are not to be trusted. (You can read our post here: Medicare star ratings of Medicare Advantage plans a farce.) It reported only 257 of 771 serious complaints in its files. By hiding these quality indicators, UnitedHealth also collected $1.4 billion in quality bonuses from Medicare.
The whistleblower suit by James Mlaker and David Jurczyk claims that UnitedHealth kept two databases, one with the full set of complaints and one with an abbreviated list of complaints that it shared with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. It further claims that UnitedHealth either dismissed serious complaints or otherwise discounted them to mislead Medicare.
Aside from these and other allegations of fraud and other misconduct, the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) has found that Medicare Advantage plans are less cost-effective than traditional Medicare. Taxpayers continue to spend more per person in Medicare Advantage plans than in traditional Medicare.
Here’s more from Just Care:
- Justice Department sues UnitedHealth Medicare Advantage for fraud
- Warning your drug copay may be higher than its cash price
- Medicare Advantage plans bilking Medicare
- Four key differences between traditional Medicare and a Medicare Advantage plan
- Four things to know if your income is low and you have Medicare
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