A new federal pilot program will allow healthcare companies, including home-based care providers, to self-report and rectify conduct, such as compliance issues.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) Civil Division announced the six-month self-disclosure pilot program on Thursday. The pilot provides more clarity on resolving certain civil billing violations, though concerns about repayment costs and risk exposure for small providers remain, home-based care industry experts told Home Health Care News.
“Companies that identify and report potential violations should have a clear way to correct them, repay the government and continue serving people in federal healthcare programs,” Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz said in a Thursday statement. “This pilot creates a defined path to accountability while helping CMS focus its enforcement resources on fraud.”
The pilot program, called the Healthcare False Claims Act Self-Disclosure Pilot Program, allows healthcare companies to voluntarily disclose civil violations of the federal False Claims Act.
The False Claims Act states that an entity that knowingly submits or causes to submit false claims to the government is liable for triple the government’s damages as well as an inflation-linked penalty, according to the DOJ.
Through the new pilot program, healthcare companies can resolve their disclosed conduct through a coordinated civil...
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