Legal and practical healthcare information.
By Keith C. Dennen This is the second part in a two-part series about the HHS’s proposed anti-discrimination regulations Gender Identity. Another area addressed in the regulations is “gender identity,” which refers to an individual’s “internal sense of gender, which may be different from that individual’s sex assigned at birth.” The proposed regulations seek to …
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By Keith C. Dennen This is the first part in a two-part series about the HHS’s proposed anti-discrimination regulations. In September, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released proposed anti-discrimination regulations that, if adopted, change the playing field in which physicians and other healthcare providers practice. These regulations are significant because: They apply …
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By Jessica L. Russell On June 9, 2015, the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of the Inspector General (“OIG”) issued a new fraud alert regarding physician compensation arrangements, with a particular emphasis on medical director arrangements. The OIG urged physicians to “carefully consider the terms and conditions of medical directorships and other compensation …
By Jessica Russell On March 30, 2015, the Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) published its proposed rule for Stage 3 the Electronic Health Record Incentive Program (the “EHR Program”). The EHR Program is a three stage program that provides incentive payments to eligible professionals and eligible hospitals and critical access hospitals (“CAHs”) (collectively, …
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By Rose Willis In a brief article published last week in the New England Journal of Medicine, Sylvia Burwell, the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), summarily set forth HHS’s efforts for improving the U.S. health care system. According to Ms. Burwell, these efforts will be focused on three methods: (1) using incentives …
Continue reading “HHS Aggressive Goals for Value Based Payments”
By Scott F. Roberts A number of recent cases demonstrate Health and Human Services’ (“HHS”) Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team’s (“HEAT”) continued success in cracking down on healthcare provider fraud. Since 2009, the federal government has recovered more than $12 billion dollars under the False Claims Act from cases involving health care …
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By Scott F. Roberts The advent of federally subsidized private pay health insurance under the Affordable Care Act has the potential to expand the application of the federal anti-kickback statute beyond just Medicare, Medicaid, and Tricare. The Affordable Care Act (sometimes referred to as “Obamacare”) currently allows individuals to purchase and receive private health insurance …
By Rose J. Willis The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) recently issued its 2014 Work Plan outlining its intended review activities of HHS Programs for 2014. This article summarizes certain portions of the 2014 Work Plan that are of considerable importance to physician practices. Security of Protected …
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By Rodney D. Butler A report published last week by the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) demonstrated, in the words of CMS, “encouraging results” in the reduction of healthcare costs to Medicare and improvement in the quality of care for over 5 million Medicare beneficiaries under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Under …
Continue reading “CMS Report Shows Some Medicare Cost Savings Through ACO Model”
By Rose Willis On December 26, 2013, Adult & Pediatric Dermatology, a dermatology practice located in Massachusetts, agreed to pay a $150,000 fine after it lost an unencrypted thumb drive containing over 2,000 patients’ health records, and for its failure to institute HITECH’s breach notification requirements in response to the loss. According to the notice …
Continue reading “Providers: Prepare Your Breach Notification Policy!”