WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has imposed a six-month nationwide freeze on new Medicare enrollments for hospices and home health agencies as federal officials intensify efforts to combat fraud in sectors tied to billions of dollars in government healthcare spending.
The moratorium, implemented in coordination with Vice President JD Vance’s Anti-Fraud Task Force, temporarily blocks new providers and certain ownership transfers from entering the Medicare system while regulators expand investigations into suspected fraudulent billing practices.
Federal officials characterized hospice and home health services as among the highest-risk areas for Medicare fraud, citing patterns in which operators allegedly used shell ownership structures and interstate expansion to avoid detection.
CMS Administrator Mehmet Oz stated that the agency intends to use the moratorium period to identify and remove providers suspected of exploiting Medicare beneficiaries and taxpayers.
“We’ve seen systemic and deeply troubling fraud in the hospice and home health space,” Oz said in a statement.
The enrollment freeze will not affect currently approved providers, which may continue serving Medicare patients, according to CMS.
During the six-month period, the agency plans to expand data analysis efforts, conduct targeted investigations, and accelerate enforcement actions against providers suspected of fraudulent activity.
CMS disclosed that it recently suspended payments to roughly 800 hospices and home health agencies in the Los Angeles area that were linked to approximately $1.4 billion in Medicare spending last year. About $70 million in payments have been suspended so far, the agency reported.
The latest action follows an earlier CMS moratorium targeting certain durable medical equipment, prosthetics, orthotics, and supplies providers.
According to CMS, the agency has also revoked or deactivated hundreds of hospice and home health providers tied to improper or fraudulent conduct and launched nationwide site inspections to verify operations.
Additional oversight measures include enhanced screening requirements for high-risk home health agencies, fingerprint-based background checks, and expanded pre- and post-claim reviews in several states, including Florida, Illinois, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, and Texas.
CMS also introduced a public hospice scoring system intended to identify providers with patterns tied to utilization, quality, or compliance concerns.
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