Ventura Hospice Fraud Lawyer

Nursing homes and assisted-living facilities in Ventura should all be places where you can trust that your elderly loved one is receiving proper care. Yet nursing home fraud incidents are on the rise in Southern California, and facilities across the state are trying to convince families that residents who get sick and need medical treatment should choose hospice care instead of getting care designed to heal.

A nursing home or assisted-living facility might tell you that hospice will cost less money because it is covered by Medicare or Medi-Cal, but you need to be wary. The facility might even insist that hospice care can be beneficial to those who are not terminally ill. This is simply not true. If you need help with a hospice fraud claim, a Ventura hospice fraud lawyer is here to assist you.

If you receive a phone call or email suggesting hospice care for a senior who is not terminally ill, you might be convinced by the facility that hospice care could make sense for your loved one. However, it is critical to understand this: hospice care does not provide treatment to make a person better or to allow for recovery. Rather, hospice care is only designed to make a person comfortable at the end of life. As such, hospice care will result in your elderly loved one failing to receive the necessary medical treatment they need if they become ill.

Hospice fraud has become increasingly common, especially in California. According to data gathered by California Health Advocates, deceptive hospice practices have nearly doubled in the last year alone, and hospice fraud has become one of the most frequent forms of Medicare and Medi-Cal fraud. In most cases, facilities convince a family to choose hospice care instead of treatment to defraud Medicare or Medi-Cal. At the same time, hospice fraud can also occur when the nursing home or assisted-living facility aims to get kickbacks from the hospice provider who provides the unnecessary palliative care. In any instance, a Ventura County lawyer with experience in hospice fraud should be consulted.

Hospice care is only for individuals who are terminally ill and are at the end of their lives. Terminal illnesses can vary widely, but Medicare.gov clarifies that you must be able to certify that you are terminally ill in order for hospice care to be covered.

According to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), a terminal illness is defined as having a “life expectancy of six months or less.” Then, hospice care provides only what is known as “comfort care,” or palliative care, “instead of care to cure your illness.” To be clear, hospice care is not intended for anyone who has the ability to get better with medical treatment, and obtaining hospice care for non-terminal illnesses can constitute hospice fraud.

When an elderly person in a nursing home or assisted-living facility becomes ill and requires treatment, hospice care is not appropriate. However, an unscrupulous nursing home or assisted-living facility, or a hospice provider, might try to convince you otherwise.

Whether you have been approached about hospice care for a senior who is not terminally ill, or you have an elderly loved one who has been harmed by hospice fraud, it is important to seek advice from a Ventura hospice fraud lawyer who can help you. Contact the Southern California Nursing Home Law Group for more information about how we can assist you with a hospice fraud claim.