12 states sign on for Medicare fraud prevention

A California-based information technology company was recently awarded a

5-year, $26.8 million contract to safeguard the Medicare program in several

western states.

As the new Western Integrity Center Program Safeguard Contractor, Computer

Sciences Corp. will monitor services in 12 states, including Alaska, Arizona,

Colorado, Hawaii, Iowa, Minnesota, Nevada, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota,

Washington and Wyoming.

According to CSC officials, integrity services will entail the detection

of possible "mispayments and potential fraudulent activities." CSC will

work with the Health Care Financing Administration, the federal agency that

administers Medicare, to "identify any billing practices [that] may need

intervention" by using data analysis tools and reviewing medical claims.

Earlier this year, CSC signed a 6-year, $351 million contract with the

New York State Department of Health to create a new system to process and

report Medicaid claims.

Medicare is the nation's largest health insurance program. It covers

39 million Americans — mainly people 65 years old and older, some people

under 65 who have disabilities, and people with permanent kidney failure

being treated with dialysis or transplants.