Amedisys, one of the nation's largest home health and hospice providers, is under investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice, the company revealed in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday.
Amedisys received a subpoena May 21 requesting that information on 53 specific hospice patients, dating from 2011 to the present, be sent to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Massachusetts. Amedisys is also required to hand over documents related to its hospice clinical and business operations and related compliance activities, according to the filing.
The Baton Rouge, La.-based company did not provide any additional details in the filing except to say it is “fully cooperating” with the Department of Justice.
“Amedisys takes ethics and regulatory compliance very seriously and is cooperating fully with the DOJ's subpoena,” the company said in a statement Friday. “Our top priority now, and always, is taking care of our patients and ensuring they continue receiving superior quality of care.”
In April 2014, Amedisys finalized a $150 million settlement over allegations that it improperly billed Medicare for nursing and therapy services. Amedisys said it disputed the allegations but settled to avoid the uncertainty and cost of ongoing litigation. That settlement came out of a lawsuit originally filed by whistle-blowers.
