Auditors recoup millions for Medicare but assailed

A pilot program to audit Medicare claims filed by hospitals and others in three states recouped nearly $250 million last year but is drawing fire from healthcare providers as it prepares to go national. The program, which relies on private-sector auditing firms to comb through past claims filed by providers, recovered $247.4 million for Medicare last year from medical providers in California, Florida and New York. Hospital groups have mounted a campaign against its expansion, saying the effort is "riddled with flaws" and suffered too many problems to expand.