The percentage of physicians in the United States using electronic health records (EHR) has increased by nine percent (20% to 29%) over the past twelve months. The push towards electronic records has been firmly supported by the current and previous presidential administrations. The Obama Administration aims to have at least…
On May 4, 2011, the Seventh Circuit Court was faced with the issue of whether a doctor’s actions violated the anti-kickback statute (United States of America v. Borrasi). Dr. Roland Borrasi was convicted of Medicare fraud after he accepted payments in the form of a salary from a psychiatric hospital…
Two hospitals in Anoka County have fired 32 employees for accessing the medical records of patients without permission or a legitimate reason to do so. The employees accessed the medical records of certain patients that were hospitalized due to a massive drug overdose stemming from a party; the overdoses were…
Recovery Audit Contractors (RAC) recovered $237.8 million in the six-month period that ended in March. This amount is already three times more than the amount of money recovered in the previous year. According to recent estimates, CMS alleges that the total sum of Medicare improper payments exceeds $47 billion annually.…
U.S. attorneys have issued letters to state officials addressing the illegality of medical marijuana. The letters were sent to several states (Washington, California, Colorado, Montana, and Rhode Island) warning them that everyone from licensed growers to regulators could be subjected to civil and criminal prosecution. These warnings have cause Washington…
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) recently published a checklist for physicians and treating practitioners to follow in order to help them comply with documentation requirements for the face-to-face examination that must occur prior to the physician ordering a Power Mobility Device (PMD) for a Medicare beneficiary. The…
Registration for the meaningful use incentive program began January 1, 2011 with more then 20,000 doctors registering for the program. This program was implemented as a means to incentivize physicians and hospitals to utilize electronic medical record systems. Certain metrics were established and participants must comply with them for 90…
The Durable Medical Equipment (DME) Competitive Bidding Program was implemented as a means to lower costs and improve beneficiary services in the DME industry. It consists of a bidding and selection process based on certain criteria determined by CMS. The Round 1 Rebid competition went into effect in 2009 across…
Those practices with electronic health record systems (EHR) in place appear to be very happy with the results. A survey conducted by the Medical Group Management Association found that 72% of practices with implemented EHR systems were “satisfied” with the results. Further, those practices which have optimized their EHR systems…
Despite efforts by various groups to have the face-to-face encounter requirement delayed for hospices and home health agencies, the requirement became effective as of April 1, 2011. For more information regarding this issue, please see a recently authored article by Wachler & Associates attorneys Amy K. Fehn and Jennifer Colagiovanni entitled…