Some rehabilitation clinics that receive funding from the Drug Medi-Cal Treatment Program have been using money and other incentives to recruit board-and-care residents in order to bill the program for more services, the Center for Investigative Reporting reports.

Medi-Cal is California’s Medicaid program (Evans/Jewett, Center for Investigative Reporting, 12/10).

Background

In July, an investigation by CIR and CNN found that $94 million has been awarded over the past two years through the Drug Medi-Cal program to 56 clinics in Southern California that have engaged in fraudulent activities.

The $94 million represents half of all public funding for the Drug Medi-Cal program (California Healthline, 11/25).

The investigation prompted state and local officials to launch their own probes, resulting in the suspension of Medi-Cal payments to 177 clinics.

Continue Reading here: http://www.californiahealthline.org/articles/2013/12/11/medical-clinics-recruit-longterm-care-patients-to-boost-billings