Pharmacies May Get Millions Back

A billing error reportedly cost Wisconsin pharmacies two-point-seven million dollars in lost Medicare Part “D” claims in a four year period. The Wisconsin State Journal says a contractor for the state’s Medicaid health programs improperly billed six insurers for Medicare Part “D” drug purchases that involved seniors. A state official says Health Management Systems billed the insurers for 37-thousand claims on behalf of seven-thousand Medicaid patients from 2013 until February of this year. Once the pharmacies paid Medicaid their proper reimbursements, they tried recouping the money from Medicare Part “D” but their claims were rejected. Now, Medicaid has duplicate payments and the state is telling 11-hundred pharmacies how to get back the money they lost from the billing mistake.