February 24, 1999
Web posted at: 5:01 p.m. EST (2201 GMT)

WASHINGTON (AllPolitics, February 24) -- As the need for Medicare reform rises nearer the top of the political agenda, the federal government announced Wednesday that it is launching a campaign to enlist senior citizens as Medicare "fraud busters."

The campaign -- a joint effort of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the Justice Department and the American Association of Retired Persons -- urges senior citizens to "fight back" if they see questionable charges on their Medicare bills by calling a new government hotline.

"We're actually asking you to be the eyes and ears of the Medicare system," HHS Secretary Donna Shalala said.

"If you're suspicious, call" your doctor or the HHS fraud watchdog line at 1-800-HHS-TIPS," Shalala said.

The campaign targets people like Margaret Parker, who is being honored by the government for reporting thousands of dollars charged to her Medicare account for the rental of a wheelchair, a hospital bed and other medical items that she said she never ordered.

"Someone had been paid a great deal of money defrauding Medicare and that bothers me," Parker said.

AMA calls plan 'counterproductive'

Shalala, Attorney General Janet Reno and other officials at a news conference Wednesday repeatedly praised most doctors and hospitals as honest, and acknowledged that many of the problems Medicare patients spot on their bills will be simple mistakes, not fraud.

Still, the anti-fraud campaign represents an insulting wedge between doctors and patients, American Medical Association President Dr. Nancy Dickey said.

"The government's tactics are lamentable," Dickey said in a statement. "It is counterproductive to demonize the entire medical community with the broad brush of fraud, waste and abuse."

"This is an attempt to disrupt the very trusting (doctor-patient) relationship, one which is very important when a patient is ill," said Dr. Thomas Reardon, president-elect of the AMA. "When they come to their physician, (patients) need to trust that physician, not think that they're crooks."

Overbilling is often caused by difficult to decipher Medicare forms, according to the AMA. It advises the government to work more closely with doctors to help cure the Medicare system.

Poll: Most believe fraud rampant

Poll results released Wednesday by the AARP, the nation's largest organization of older persons, showed that nearly 90 percent of those surveyed believe health care fraud was increasing or holding steady.

Nearly eight in 10 of the survey participants said they were unaware of any efforts to reduce the problem and about 80 percent said they thought health care fraud was either extremely widespread or somewhat widespread.

The telephone survey of 2,000 adults of all ages in December 1998 has a margin of error of +/- two percentage points.

Medicare actually lost about seven cents of every dollar spent to fraud, waste and mistakes in 1998, government auditors said earlier this month.

That amounts to more than $12 billion -- but it's only about half of what was lost by the government's health insurance program for the elderly and disabled just two years ago.

The government in 1993 launched a major crackdown on Medicare waste with new money and power granted by Congress. Since then, the percentage of the program's 860 million bills a year that are reviewed by auditors has risen from 5 percent to 14 percent.

Also, the Justice Department is working more closely with Medicare auditors to investigate suspicious claims and prosecute cases of suspected fraud.

The AARP survey sought public opinion on health care fraud in general and Medicare fraud in particular.

Major reforms proposed

About 72 percent of those surveyed believe -- erroneously -- that the Medicare program would stay solvent if fraud and abuse were eliminated.

"Everything we have seen indicates that the system will require additional funding to stay solvent, over and above the elimination of fraud and abuse," said Lee Norrgard, an AARP spokesman.

The Medicare trust fund is projected to run out in 2008 if major changes are not undertaken in the system.

Congress and the White House have set up a bipartisan commission to come up with a plan to reform Medicare. The commission was originally scheduled to vote on proposed reforms by March 1, but is not expected to meet that deadline as various proposals have raised new questions.

Several seniors' groups have said they want guarantees that their Medicare benefits would rise with inflation, and the White House has also asked for more specifics about what kind of core benefits will be guaranteed under a reformed system.

CNN's Eileen O'Connor and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Wednesday, February 24, 1999

• Senate panel spotlights independent counsel law
• Budget Office: Focus on economy to save Social Security
• Federal campaign enlists seniors as Medicare 'fraud busters'
• Hillary Clinton meets with Schumer, Lowey on possible Senate bid
• Begala leaving White House for teaching job
• Buchanan to announce presidential candidacy in New Hampshire
• Clinton kicks off campaign to insure children under Medicaid
• Fed chief wary on economy
• Census Bureau to revive sampling
• Ken Bode ready to leave PBS over changes to `Washington Week'
• GOP criticizes Clinton defense plan
• Clinton legal fund raised $4.5M
• Speaker: GOP may exceed spending limit
• Ex-President Ford touts Gov. Bush
• Hubbell trial will haunt first lady
• Vice president's daughter expecting a baby
• Gore courts Latino leaders
• Magazine: Lewinsky recalls terror
• Clinton settlement check in Jones case deposited with federal court

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