Archive for January 2016
Legal issues relating to telemedicine expected to increase
While the days of the Marcus Welby house call have, for the most part, been relegated to the history books, technology has spawned another kind of house call – telemedicine. Although the use of electronic communications between doctor and patient has been gaining ground in recent years, many barriers to treatment via telemedicine continue to…
Read MoreGAO Report: HHS Lacks Adequate Healthcare Workforce Planning
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), which engages in planning for the 72 healthcare workforce programs administered by its agencies, lacks comprehensive planning and oversight to ensure that these efforts meet national healthcare workforce needs, according to a new report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office. These programs send HHS funding to institutions…
Read MoreHow data mining is uncovering healthcare fraud
What does your data say about your healthcare practice? Does it show that you bill considerably more than your colleagues for certain types of procedures? What about your facility? Is it performing more of a particular procedure than nearby competitors? These days, healthcare fraud investigators increasingly rely on data to root out healthcare fraud. They…
Read MoreFinalized DME rule targets fraud, abuse
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has finalized a rule that creates a prior authorization process for some durable medical equipment, prosthetics, orthotics, and supplies (DMEPOS) that it has determined are often subject to unnecessary utilization – i.e. healthcare fraud. The rule was first proposed in May 2014 and included a Master List of…
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