Today, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius and U.S. Associate Attorney General Thomas J. Perrelli issued a press release and announced a new report showing that the government’s health care fraud prevention and enforcement efforts recovered more than $4 billion in taxpayer dollars in Fiscal Year 2010. According to the press release, the amount recovered in 2010 is the “highest annual amount ever recovered from people who attempted to defraud seniors and taxpayers.” The press release references that the money recovered was “stolen” from federal health care programs. What this means for 2011? The governmental agencies involved in searching for health care fraud and abuse, such as State Medicaid Fraud and Abuse Units, HHS-OIG, and FBI, have a renewed green light to initiate investigations on any physician, physician group, hospital and health center, and any other medical provider or supplier, for suspected fraudulent billing practices. As a result, all persons and entities in the health care industry should make sure that everything they do is documented thoroughly, completely and accurately to help prevent investigations and civil and criminal prosecution for recovery of amounts billed to federal health care programs, which include Medicare, Medicaid, and CHAMPUS. For more information visit http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2011pres/01/20110124a.htm.
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