Medicare Fraud

CMS Proposes New Exceptions to Stark Law for Value-Based Care

by Jacqueline LaPointe

A rule proposed by CMS earlier today aims to modernize Medicare’s physician self-referral law, which is also known as the Stark Law, in an effort to advance value-based care. The Stark law...

25% of Total Healthcare Spending Attributed to Waste, Study Finds

by Jacqueline LaPointe

Despite initiatives to reduce spending and promote value over volume, a new study showed that the US healthcare system still wasted between $760 billion to $935 billion, representing approximately...

Dozens of Providers Charged in September Healthcare Fraud Busts

by Jacqueline LaPointe

Late last week, the Department of Justice (DoJ) charged 35 individuals, including ten medical professionals, for their involvement in a national healthcare fraud scheme that cost Medicare more than...

DoJ Probes Swedish Health Services About Joint Ventures, Other Deals

by Jacqueline LaPointe

The US Department of Justice (DoJ) is investigating Providence St. Joseph’s Swedish Health Services over a civil issue, the non-profit disclosed in its recent quarterly earnings report. The DoJ...

Feds Dismantle $1.2B Healthcare Fraud Scheme Involving DME

by Jacqueline LaPointe

Federal authorities recently took down a massive international healthcare fraud scheme involving telemedicine and durable medical equipment (DME) companies, the Department of Justice (DoJ) announced on...

MedStar Health Pays $35M to Settle 2 Healthcare Fraud Cases

by Jacqueline LaPointe

MedStar Health Inc. and two affiliated hospitals recently agreed to pay $35 million to the federal government to resolve healthcare fraud cases that alleged the health system paid kickbacks in exchange...

Justice Dept Recovered $2.5B from Healthcare False Claims in 2018

by Jacqueline LaPointe

The Department of Justice recovered over $2.8 billion from False Claims Act cases in the 2018 fiscal year, and the majority of the recoveries stemmed from healthcare fraud schemes. The False Claims...

Medicare, Medicaid Exclude 200% More Docs for Healthcare Fraud

by Jacqueline LaPointe

Efforts to combat healthcare fraud, waste, abuse by Medicare, Medicaid, and public insurance programs may be paying off, according to a new study from the University of Southern California and Harvard...

Aurora Health Care Pays $12M to Settle Healthcare Fraud Claims

by Jacqueline LaPointe

An integrated health system that services patients in Wisconsin, Illinois, and Michigan recently agreed to pay $12 million to federal and state governments to settle healthcare fraud...

Telemedicine at Center of Billion-Dollar Healthcare Fraud Scheme

by Jacqueline LaPointe

Law enforcement officials in Tennessee recently charged four individuals and seven companies involved in a $1 billion healthcare fraud scheme involving telemedicine services, according to details...

OIG Mulls Anti-Kickback Statute Changes to Boost Value-Based Care

by Jacqueline LaPointe

HHS is looking to make sweeping changes to healthcare fraud and abuse laws. As the comment period for a CMS Request for Information (RFI) on the Stark Law closed, the HHS Office of the Inspector...

MI Hospital System Pays $84.5M to Resolve Healthcare Fraud Claims

by Jacqueline LaPointe

A regional hospital system in the Detroit, Michigan area agreed to pay the federal government over $84 million to resolve allegations that the system violated the Anti-Kickback Statute and the...

AHA: Create Stark Law Exception for Value-Based Reimbursement

by Jacqueline LaPointe

The American Hospital Association (AHA) recently urged CMS to modify the Stark Law by adding value-based reimbursement exceptions that enable providers to coordinate care and advance patient outcomes....

NY Health System Settles E&M Upcoding, Healthcare Fraud Case

by Jacqueline LaPointe

A New York-based health system will pay the federal government $14.7 million to settle healthcare fraud allegations that claim the system engaged in evaluation and management (E&M)...

Over 600 Individuals Charged in 2018 Healthcare Fraud Takedown

by Jacqueline LaPointe

The HHS Office of the Inspector General (OIG) and Department of Justice (DoJ) recently announced the largest healthcare fraud takedown to date, with over 600 defendants charged with participating in...

Banner Health Pays $18M to Resolve Medicare Fraud Accusations

by Jacqueline LaPointe

Banner Health, one of the largest non-profit hospital systems in the country, recently agreed to pay $18 million to the federal government to resolve Medicare fraud allegations involving 12 of its...

HHS, DoJ Recovered $2.6B from Healthcare Fraud Schemes in 2017

by Jacqueline LaPointe

For every dollar the federal government spent on combatting healthcare fraud and abuse in the last three years, the government recovered $4, HHS recently reported. While federal healthcare fraud...

Healthcare Fraud Allegations Spur $3.2M Settlement for Providers

by Jacqueline LaPointe

A group of five provider organizations specializing in orthopedic surgeries or anesthesiology recently paid $3.2 million to the federal government to resolve healthcare fraud allegations involving...

DoJ Memo Limiting Guidance Use to Impact Healthcare Fraud Cases

by Jacqueline LaPointe

A recent Department of Justice (DoJ) memo limiting the use of regulatory guidance to pursue affirmative civil enforcement cases could alter the federal government’s approach to healthcare fraud...

Ex Lab Exec, Marketing Partners Liable For $51M in Medicare Fraud

by Jacqueline LaPointe

A federal jury in South Carolina recently found the former CEO of Health Diagnostic Laboratory and the owners of the healthcare organization’s marketing partner liable in a Medicare fraud case...