Medicare Paid $30M for ‘Mystery Ambulance Rides’ in 2012
Medicare paid $30 million for ambulance rides that had no records to substantiate that patients received care, according to a report by the HHS Office of Inspector General. Medicare Part B spent $5.8 billion on ambulance trips in 2012, nearly double what it spent in 2003. Besides the $30 million in "mystery ambulance rides," Medicare also paid $24 million for ambulance rides that did not meet criteria for payment, the report found.
- "Medicare's $30M Ambulance-Ride Mystery" (AP/New York Times, 9/29).