March 7, 2008
Media Contact: Sandi Copes
Phone: (850) 245-0150
Attorney General McCollum Launches Healthcare Fraud Education Effort
~ Community outreach initiative to include medical professionals, citizens ~
TALLAHASSEE, FL – Attorney General Bill McCollum today launched a statewide initiative to educate citizens and healthcare providers about the dangers and costs of Medicaid and other healthcare-related fraud. Intended to foster a spirit of cooperation and raise awareness of how to report and avoid fraud and abuse, the presentations will be given by members of the Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit at hospitals, senior centers and other venues around Florida.
“Healthcare fraud affects people in every age group and from every walk of life,” said Attorney General McCollum, who attended the inaugural presentation at Aventura Hospital and Medical Center in Aventura today. “In addition to the suffering this crime brings to the community, it also drains hundreds of millions of dollars from our state’s healthcare system at a time when we can least afford it.”
National statistics show that nearly half of Medicaid’s recipients are children and almost a third are elderly or disabled. Florida’s Medicaid program is among the largest in the country, serving more than two million people each month. Recent reports show as much as two billion dollars a year may be lost in Florida’s $16 billion Medicaid program to fraud and abuse. Last year, the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit investigated 1,013 complaints and returned approximately $70 million in defrauded funds to the state.
“We are proud to partner with Attorney General Bill McCollum in his healthcare fraud education initiative for the community,” said Heather J. Rohan, CEO at Aventura Hospital and Medical Center, “Medicaid fraud prevents vital healthcare resources from reaching members of our communities who need this assistance.”
At the direction of Attorney General McCollum, the office’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit recently implemented a new statewide investigative strategy which includes focusing on the most serious and/or habitual offenders and on prosecution and prevention of patient abuse, neglect and exploitation cases. The unit has also created a 16-person Complex Civil Enforcement Bureau comprised of attorneys, financial analysts and investigators to go after individuals and companies who knowingly siphon funds from the Medicaid Program purely for personal profit.
The Medicaid Fraud Control Unit has also made it a priority to establish state and federal partnerships with other stakeholders in order to share information on criminal enterprises and pool investigative and prosecutor resources.
Persons wishing to report suspected healthcare fraud or patient abuse, neglect or exploitation can contact the Attorney General’s Fraud Hotline toll-free at 1-866-966-7226 or can file a complaint online at: http://myfloridalegal.com. More information about the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit is also available on that site. A copy of the outreach brochure is available online at: http://myfloridalegal.com/webfiles.nsf/WF/MRAY-7CGHVX/$file/FacesofHealthCareFraud.pdf