U.S. bans new home health, ambulance providers in three high-fraud cities from Medicare, Medicaid

Federal officials are temporarily banning certain types of home health and ambulance providers in three major, high-fraud cities from enrolling in Medicare or Medicaid.

The Associated Press/Washington Post: Feds Ban Some Types Of Medicare Providers From Enrolling In Miami, Chicago, Houston
For the first time in history, federal health officials said Friday they will ban certain types of Medicare and Medicaid providers in three high-fraud cities from enrolling in the taxpayer-funded programs for the poor as part of an effort to prevent scams (7/26).

Reuters: U.S. Bans New Home Health, Ambulance Providers In Three Regions
The U.S. government on Friday said it would temporarily ban new home health providers and ambulance suppliers from enrolling in Medicare, Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program in three areas of the country, citing the risk of fraud. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) said the bans will apply to home health agencies in the Miami, Florida and Chicago, Illinois metropolitan areas as well as ambulance suppliers in the Houston, Texas area (7/26).

In the meantime, The Fiscal Times looks at problems at assisted living facilities --

Fiscal Times: Abuse And Neglect In Assisted Living Facilities
You've seen the sales pitches about America's assisted living facilities. Seniors can flourish in bright, cheery alternatives to nursing homes and live out their golden years securely, monitored by medical professionals who tend to their every need. The business of assisted living paints a depressingly different picture, according to a provocative new documentary from PBS Frontline airing this Tuesday night, accompanied by a series from ProPublica that is being published this week. Nearly 750,000 American seniors live in assisted living facilities today -- but instead of being cared for, many are abused and neglected, according to a year-long investigation (Mackey, 7/29).