In a legal complaint published this week, the U.S. Department of Justice accused AseraCare, a national for-profit Hospice group, of making fraudulent Medicare Claims.

The Department of Justice contends that AseraCare defrauded the government of millions of dollars that was intended for patients who were terminally ill. Hospice care is covered by Medicare and is a type of Palliative, which is intended to address pain, stress, and other symptoms of those who are facing a terminal disease. Under Medicare, someone who has less than six months to live is eligible for this type of Medicare coverage, but it will prevent them from receiving other more standard treatments for their condition. This means that those receiving reimbursement for hospice care would not be eligible to also receive medications or treatments that are aimed at preventing death or other complications of their condition.

According to the complaint, AseraCare has, since 2007 at the earliest, claimed patients as terminally ill in order to receive payments from Medicare. These allegations were brought about by former employees of AseraCare, who created a whistle-blower lawsuit alleging that Medicare Fraud is prevalent nationwide. The original lawsuit was filed against Golden Gate National Senior Care LLC, who is related to Golden Living. AseraCare Hospice is owned by Golden Gate.

The Vice President of Golden Living, Blair Jackson, has denied these accusations, stating that they feel they have not violated any laws or regulations.