Taken from www.local6.com quote...
====================================================================== Reba McEntire, Faith Hill Concerts Do Not Qualify As Medical Bills POSTED: 6:44 am EST February 15, 2005 UPDATED: 9:07 am EST February 15, 2005 BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- Painkillers. A wheelchair. A concert by Faith Hill. Which of these is covered by Medicare? All of them, according to the people at HealthSouth. Some people say music is a tonic to them, but Medicare isn't buying HealthSouth's defense of some artist billing. According to a newspaper in Birmingham, the health agency booked Hill, Reba McEntire, Amy Grant, Brooks and Dunn, KC and the Sunshine Band, and the country band Alabama for management meetings, then billed Medicare for the cost. McEntire and Alabama were also booked for annual management meetings at Disney World between 1996 and 2001, then billed to Medicare. A $325 million settlement announced by the Justice Department in December said HealthSouth acknowledged improperly billing Medicare for lavish entertainment and other expenses. But this is the first mention of who performed at the meetings. Fired CEO Richard Scrushy is currently on trial on charges he directed the accounting fraud at HealthSouth. Scrushy, in a newspaper interview, defended the meetings at Disney World and said the company got a monetary boost because managers shared cost-saving strategies and other information. Scrushy said each of the events cost about $1 million, but HealthSouth spokesman Andy Brimmer said company records show the meetings often cost more, with the 2002 meeting running more than $3.2 million. HealthSouth spokesman Andy Brimmer said the company's new management hopes to cut the cost and said the company will return to Orlando this year only because of a long-term contract signed when Scrushy was CEO. ======================================================================= -- Unsubscribe? [EMAIL PROTECTED] Change options? www.otnow.com/mailman/options/otlist_otnow.com Archive? www.mail-archive.com/otlist@otnow.com Help? [EMAIL PROTECTED]
