Archive for July 2017
Opioid Crackdown Requires Increased Focus on Compliance
It’s not just drug dealers and traffickers selling opioids who have become the target of law enforcement. Earlier this month, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General, along with state and federal law enforcement partners, targeted healthcare providers. The agency announced that 412 defendants including 115 doctors, nurses and other…
Read MoreCMS Proposes Changes to 2018 Medicare Fee Schedule
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has issued a proposed rule that will update Medicare payment and policies for doctors and other healthcare providers that the agency says “reflect a broader strategy to relieve regulatory burdens for providers; support the patient-doctor relationship in healthcare; and promote transparency, flexibility, and innovation in the delivery…
Read MoreOIG Cracks Down on Hospice Provider Fraud
Last year, the HHS Office of the Inspector General stated the hospice fraud was rampant and that it would be an enforcement priority for the agency. The OIG found that some hospice operators, doctors and staff were recruiting patients to maximize profits, even when in some cases the patients didn’t need hospice care. Their illegal…
Read MoreJune a busy month for healthcare fraud enforcement
Individual physicians, medical billers, DME manufacturers, healthcare executives and even entire healthcare systems were on the receiving end of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General’s (OIG) enforcement efforts last month. In fact, there were 39 actions announced by the IG’s office in June, up from 35 in May…
Read MoreNew Florida Law Cracks Down on Patient Brokering by Drug Treatment Providers
Effective July 1, drug treatment providers in Florida must comply with stringent new regulations designed to crackdown on corruption within the industry. Late last month, Governor Rick Scott signed into law HB 807, commonly referred to as the “Practices of Substance Abuse Service Providers Act.” The new law provides state regulators with broader powers as…
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