Medicare Part D Is Still Paying Millions for Drugs Already Paid for Under the Part A Hospice Benefit

In 2012, we issued a report to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) indicating that during 2009, Medicare Part D paid for prescription drugs that likely should have been paid for by hospice organizations under the Medicare Part A hospice benefit. We matched Part A and Part D data to identify occurrences when Part D paid for drugs for beneficiaries who were receiving hospice care at the same time. We conducted this audit to follow up and expand on the previous audit.