Feb 21, 2020 | Health Care
In a press release issued last month, the Department of Justice announced its first criminal prosecution under the Eliminating Kickback in Recovery Act (EKRA). Defendant Theresa Merced – who is 80 years old – pled guilty and admitted to soliciting kickbacks from a...
Jan 17, 2020 | Health Care
On January 15, 2020, a federal jury found Dr. Jorge Zamora-Quezada, a Texas rheumatologist, guilty for his participation in a $325 million health care fraud scheme. Dr. Zamora-Quezada was indicted on May 9, 2018, for, amongst other crimes, health care fraud,...
Jan 11, 2020 | Health Care
On January 9, 2019, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that it had recovered over $3 billion from False Claims Act cases in fiscal year 2019. Nearly 75% of that was the result of qui tam whistleblower lawsuits. According to the DOJ, of the total recovery,...
Nov 26, 2019 | Health Care
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has issued its final rule requiring hospitals to publish prices for services beginning in 2021. Under the rule, hospitals must disclose prices in a machine-readable format and on a searchable platform. The...
Oct 23, 2019 | Health Care
Earlier this month, both the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General (OIG), and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued proposed rules that contain major and significant changes to the Anti-Kickback statute (AKS), the...
Aug 27, 2019 | Health Care
The Anti-Kickback Statute (AKS) is a federal law that, at its core, prohibits offering, paying, soliciting, or receiving any sort of remuneration in exchange for federal healthcare program referrals. AKS violations carry with them potential criminal penalties,...
