Long-Term Care

Medicare program on GAO's high-risk list

Contemporary Long-Term Care Weekly, February 15, 2007

Medicare is still considered a high-risk program for fraud and abuse because of the fiscal challenges caused by its design, rising healthcare costs, and the arrival of the baby boomers. This is according to a January Government Accountability Office (GAO) report, which acknowledged that CMS has attempted to fix some issues, but stated that more work is needed to increase the program's efficiency, integrity, and effectiveness.

 

The Medicare program's size has led to improper payments and mismanagement, the GAO stated in its report. Although CMS has taken steps to improve its payment system, the GAO found that some suppliers, such as those for durable medical equipment, receive improperly high payment rates for their services or supplies.

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