Investigators and advocates say some are billing Medicare for patients who were never appropriate for hospice or who don\u2019t even know they\u2019re enrolled.<\/p>\n
McNair told KBTX that the fraud is draining taxpayer dollars and eroding trust in legitimate end-of-life care.<\/p>\n
How the fraud works<\/p>\n
McNair\u2019s research found as many as 15 hospices operating out of a single building, all under the same owner.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe reason you do that is you go under the radar screen. You\u2019re new and able to operate with a very small census, therefore, you don\u2019t have to report quality data,\u201d McNair said.<\/p>\n
She said just 10 patients per hospice generates $60,000 a month in Medicare billing.<\/p>\n
\u201cTake 10 patients, multiply that times 15 hospices working under one building, under one owner, and you can do the math. That\u2019s many millions of dollars that\u2019s being frauded from the government,\u201d McNair said.<\/p>\n
McNair said some hospices are enrolling patients who have no idea they\u2019re even on service, then billing Medicare in their name.<\/p>\n
![\"Lisa](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/LYEV53FLRNBKRPCGHHDARWHIUI.png\")
Lisa McNair, the President and CEO of Hospice Brazos Valley, exposed hospice fraud across Texas to state lawmakers.(kbtx)<\/p>\n
\u201cPatients are on service, they don\u2019t even know that they\u2019ve been brought on hospice. They\u2019re going to seek treatment, and when they get there, they\u2019re like, \u2018you\u2019re on hospice,\u2019\u201d McNair said.<\/p>\n
She said it\u2019s happening at least once a week in Brazos County. Families who specifically request Hospice Brazos Valley are being approached by competing hospices and signed without realizing it.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have examples all the time of people that come and go, we asked for you, and before we knew it, someone else had come in. We thought they were you, but then we signed papers and realized we were with a different hospice,\u201d McNair said.<\/p>\n
Red flags and what\u2019s next<\/p>\n
McNair said some hospices have 100% live discharge rates, meaning every patient brought onto service is discharged alive.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou don\u2019t normally come on hospice to live. You come on hospice because you\u2019re at the end of your life. When you have a live discharge rate of 100%, that means every patient that you\u2019ve brought on service, you\u2019re discharging them alive. Why would you do that? Why does that look suspicious? It\u2019s because you\u2019re bringing them on, you\u2019re billing for services. They were never appropriate for hospice,\u201d McNair said.<\/p>\n
According to her research, 61% of Medicare-certified hospices in Texas did not report any quality data in 2025.<\/p>\n
![\"According](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/MVE6XF4SKVF6LAXAUJGGBPHDPM.png\")
According to Lia McNair, Texas lawmakers and regulators are taking a closer look at hospice facilities in Texas.(kbtx)<\/p>\n
McNair is calling on Texas lawmakers to stop issuing new hospice licenses while the state investigates the ones already operating.<\/p>\n
\u201cLet\u2019s look at the licenses we\u2019ve issued, who\u2019s appropriate, who\u2019s not appropriate. Let\u2019s back that up a little bit. Then, lift the moratorium when you\u2019re confident that you have a handle on how licenses are being issued in the state of Texas,\u201d McNair said.<\/p>\n
McNair said the state is already drafting new rules, and federal regulators are now taking a closer look at Texas.<\/p>\n
What families should know<\/p>\n
According to McNair, Hospice Brazos Valley is the only nonprofit hospice provider in a 17-county area and is currently ranked number one in the state for quality.<\/p>\n