The Department of Justice is taking legal action against hospitals, health systems and technology companies for submitting false claims to Medicare and Medicaid pursuant to the Electronic Health Records Incentive Program, according to the National Law Review.
Five things to know:
1. The Electronic Health Records Incentive Program was established to encourage healthcare providers to adopt and demonstrate their "meaningful use" of EHR technology. To receive incentive payments, providers must attest that they satisfy certain requirements, including measures for analyzing and addressing security risks to EHRs.
2. In recent years, the Justice Department has settled several false claims cases related to the incentive program, according to the National Law Review.
3. Burlington, Kan.-based Coffey Health System, which operates a 25-bed critical access hospital, entered into a settlement agreement with the Justice Department earlier this month. The health system allegedly falsely attested that it conducted or reviewed security risk analyses, as required to receive the EHR incentive payments.
4. In February, Tampa, Fla.-based EHR company Greenway Health agreed to pay $57.25 million to resolve allegations that it misrepresented the capabilities of its software, causing clients to submit false claims to the government in violation of the False Claims Act. The government alleged the company misrepresented its software's capabilities to HHS and caused clients to falsely attest that they were eligible for EHR incentive payments.
5. In June 2017, eClinicalWorks, an EHR vendor, and some of its executives and employees agreed to pay $155 million to resolve allegations it violated the False Claims Act. The government alleged eClinicalWorks falsely obtained certification for its EHR software by withholding information from its certifying entity. Due to eClinicalWorks' alleged misrepresentations, healthcare organizations using the company's software submitted false claims for federal incentive payments.
Access the full National Law Review article here.
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