Over the past few decades, South Florida has seen some of the most notorious medical frauds, scams and questionable Medicare billing schemes in the U.S. And it seems that medical device companies are keeping the tradition alive, according to a new report issued by the Office of the Inspector General of HHS. The new OIG investigation, which looked at 1,581 suppliers of medical equipment companies in South Florida, found that more than half of the companies don't meet HHS's minimum standards. When federal agents made surprise visits, they found that 31 percent (491 suppliers) didn't maintain facilities or weren't open and staffed, while another 14 percent failed on other criteria. The kicker: those 491 suppliers not open for business had somehow managed to collect $97 million from Medicare during 2006. Overall, South Florida generates roughly $1 billion per year in Medicare fraud, federal agents said.
To get more details on South Florida's Medicare scammers:
- read this item from The Miami Herald