On Wednesday, October 23, 2013, the Office of Inspector General (“OIG”) for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services released a report detailing its findings from a study it completed on the prevalence and use of devices supplied by physician owned distributors (“PODs”). The report, issued in response to…
Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette along with Steve Arwood, Director of the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, and State Senator Joe Hune, recently announced their plan to collaborate on a bill designed to strengthen Michigan’s regulation and oversight of compounding pharmacies. Compounding pharmacies have been under increased scrutiny…
Jessica Gustafson, Esq. and Abby Pendleton, Esq., co-chairs of the firm’s Medicare and RAC department authored an ABA Health eSource article titled “The Latest Development in Medicare Audits: Supplemental MEdical Review Contractor (“SMRC”) Audits.” To view this article click here. The article discusses the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services’s…
Abby Pendleton, Esq., Adrienne Dresevic, Esq., Carey Kalmowitz, Esq., Robert Iwrey, Esq., and Jessica Gustafson, Esq. were named Attorneys of The Month by Attorney At Law Magazine and were featured on the front page and on page 16 in, “Healthy Growth: The Health Law Partners Has Rapidly Become One Of…
Sleep testing is clearly on the Office of Inspector General’s radar. A recently released report by the agency identified nearly $17 million in questionable billing for PSG services. A lawyer analyzes the OIG’s report and provides recommendations you can implement today. In a report issued last week, the Office of…
On October 15, 2013, the Office of Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Human Services (“OIG”) issued an Advisory Opinion favorable to a non-profit health services organization’s (“Requestor’s”) proposal to provide free dental screenings and services to uninsured children while billing Medicaid for the same services provided to children…
Among other goals, federal health care reform strives to increase the public’s access to and coverage under affordable and meaningful health insurance. The Affordable Care Act (ACA) requires most U.S. Citizens and residents to have certain minimal health insurance coverage. The individual mandate–the imposition of a penalty upon certain individuals…
Under a settlement with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Affinity Health Plan, Inc. will settle potential violations of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) Privacy and Security Rules for $1,215,780. Affinity Health Plan is a not-for-profit managed care plan serving the New…
On August 2, 2013, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”) published its highly anticipated 2014 Inpatient Prospective Payment System (“IPPS”) Final Rule (the “2014 IPPS Final Rule”). The 2014 IPPS Final Rule will be effective on October 1, 2013. There are two main aspects of the 2014 IPPS…
The National Practitioner Data Bank (NPDB) issued a news release explaining why state record expungement is not a valid reason to void Data Bank reports. The NPDB is an electronic collection of all payments made on behalf of physicians in connection with medical liability settlements or judgments as well as…