Moratorium a 'Sledgehammer' Approach in Hospice Fraud Forcefield

Healthcare Transactions attorney Michelle Huntsman was quoted in a Hospice News article assessing the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' (CMS) nationwide moratorium on new hospice and home health enrollments and its implications for fraud prevention, regulatory enforcement and compliance across the industry. The article explored how the temporary pause, designed to address concerns about program integrity, may affect patient access, telehealth flexibility, due diligence and transaction activity as providers navigate regulatory oversight and Medicare enrollment requirements. Ms. Huntsman cautioned that the policy could introduce increased enforcement activity, investigations and scrutiny in mergers and acquisitions as organizations work to meet CMS expectations while managing constrained resources.

"If the moratorium were to extend beyond six months, that is a significant amount of money that we're going to see get impacted," she said. "We're going to see a strong uptick in regulatory enforcement actions, investigations and provider reviews. Providers want to maintain a culture of compliance and high quality, but their resources are limited."

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