Electronic health record vendor NextGen Healthcare has agreed to pay $31 million to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by misrepresenting the capabilities of certain versions of its EHR software, and providing unlawful payment to its users to induce them to recommend NextGen's software, according to the Department of Justice.

In a complaint filed in conjunction with the settlement, the U.S. contends that NextGen falsely obtained certification for its software in connection with the 2014 Edition certification criteria published by the Department of Health and Human Services' Office of the National Coordinator.

Specifically, the government alleges that NextGen relied on an auxiliary product designed only to perform the certification test scripts, which concealed from the certifying entity that NextGen's EHR lacked critical functionality.

As a result, the government alleges that the EHR NextGen ultimately released to its users lacked certain required functionalities, including the ability to record vital sign data, translate data into required medical vocabularies, and create complete clinical summaries.

WHAT'S THE IMPACT

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 established the Medicare and Medicaid EHR Incentive Program to encourage healthcare providers to adopt and demonstrate their "meaningful use" of EHR technology.

Under the program, HHS made incentive payments to eligible healthcare providers that adopted certified EHR technology and...

Read Full Story: https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMibWh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmhlYWx0aGNhcmVmaW5h...