Signs of hospice fraud in Los Angeles County are worsening despite a state crackdown, with more than 700 of roughly 1,800 licensed hospices in the county showing multiple warning indicators identified by California auditors, according to new reporting by CBS News. 

Los Angeles County remains the epicenter of the problem years after California’s state auditor warned of explosive growth in hospice operators and an estimated $105 million in Medicare over-billing in a single year, the news agency said. 

CBS found dense clustering of providers, overlapping staff, low patient counts and unusually high billing patterns, including nearly 500 hospices operating within a three-mile radius and 89 companies registered to a single Van Nuys building. 

Some hospices appeared to function as “ghost” operations, with disconnected phone numbers, empty offices, and unopened mail at listed locations. In one case, a single medical director was listed as working at 45 hospices. The network also found seven instances in which hospices reporting an average of zero patients in 2024 still billed Medicare.

The findings were illustrated by the case of Lynn Ianni, 69, who told CBS she discovered her Medicare number had been used to fraudulently enroll her in hospice, causing her physical therapy coverage to be denied even though she was not terminally ill.

California officials told CBS they have taken action, including license revocations, criminal cases, and a moratorium on new hospice licenses through January 2027. But CBS reported that none of the hospices flagged in its analysis appeared in the state’s enforcement database, and only seven hospice facilities statewide have faced enforcement actions since the 2022 audit.

Attorney General Rob Bonta acknowledged to CBS that authorities need to do more to respond to warning signs before losses occur, while Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office said the state has intensified enforcement efforts.

Read more at CBS News