Signaling a possible future approach to regulating Schedule II-V prescribing via telemedicine in lieu of in-person examinations, on January 17 the DEA issued a notice of proposed rulemaking regarding its next iteration of...more
US Congress on December 20, 2024 passed a last-minute temporary government funding bill that keeps the government open for three months. As part of this package, a number of existing telehealth flexibilities were also...more
If your organization has faced a Medicare audit in the last decade, you may have experienced a significant delay in the Medicare appeals process due to a monumental backlog of claims pending in front of administrative law...more
COVID-19 significantly affected home-based care providers, such as home health agencies (HHAs) and hospices, whose staff had to overcome both physical and mental burdens of going into patients’ homes to deliver care,...more
CMS posted an expanded set, dated April 29, of Medicare regulatory flexibility measures for hospice organizations related to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, supplementing the previous COVID hospice flexibilities guidance...more
In the Care Alternatives False Claims Act (FCA) appeal, a panel of the US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit on March 4 reversed the summary judgment granted to hospice provider Care Alternatives at the district court,...more
3/6/2020
/ Appeals ,
Cooperative Compliance Regime ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Eligibility Determination ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Fraud and Abuse ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare Facilities ,
Healthcare Fraud ,
Hospice ,
Medicare ,
Medicare Billing Privileges ,
Qui Tam ,
Reversal ,
Risk Management ,
Whistleblowers
The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC), which advises Congress on Medicare issues, recently finalized and approved a series of recommended updates on January 16 that include payment reductions for hospice and home...more
Continuing to look for ways to reduce the Medicare administrative law judge (ALJ) appeals backlog, CMS has explored enhancing the role of Qualified Independent Contractors (QICs) to resolve disputed claims earlier in the...more
The Office of Inspector General Portfolio Report is a rehash of the watchdog agency’s 2006–2016 findings on quality of care concerns and program integrity issues. The report, which garnered some critical press attention for...more
The report shows significant lapses in 2012 GIP service claims and recommends that CMS implement additional oversight and enforcement options....more
The OIG’s recently released study examining Medicare hospice claims from 2007 to 2012 calls for targeted reviews of hospices that receive a high proportion of their payments for care in assisted living facilities....more