What A CMS Fraud Watchdog Learned By Caring For Her Parents In Hospice

InnovationHealthcareWhat A CMS Fraud Watchdog Learned By Caring For Her Parents In HospiceByWes Kilgore,Contributor.Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. Wes Kilgore covers the intersection of media and well-being. Follow AuthorJun 11, 2026, 03:29pm EDTDollar bills on table with stethoscope on them. Bribes in medical facilities conceptmegaflopp - stock.adobe.comThe realization came to Dara Corrigan in late August, when she and her younger sister had to place both of their parents into hospice care within days of each other.Corrigan was not a typical stressed relative, navigating end-of-life care. She’d worked for decades in senior federal service, serving as the Acting Inspector General for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and directing the Center for Program Integrity at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Her career was built on protecting Medicare from fraud.Yet, sitting by the bedside as a daughter, the benefit looked entirely different from how it appeared on a regulatory spreadsheet."It was surreal being on the other side," Corrigan says. "I spent a significant amount of time during my career analyzing fraud and abuse, taking actions against bad hospice providers, and trying new approaches. But seeing it through the eyes of a daughter caring for her own parents changed that."Her experience comes at a moment of reckoning for the hospice industry. Once dominated by altruistic non-profits, hospice now attracts sophisticated criminal networks. California is hardest hit, with officials dismantling 'ghost' agencies created to steal taxpayer money.The Mechanics of "Ghost Hospice"In April, the U.S. Department of Justice launched the West Coast Health Care Fraud Strike Force, uniting federal agents, the FBI, and the HHS Office of the Inspector General to target a massive spike in hospice, sober home, and wound care schemes across California, Arizona, and Nevada....