Life is hectic, we know, so here’s a recap of the Healthcare Weekly Hot Topics you can’t afford to miss:
- 1.5 Million Patients’ Data Exposed in Breaches in September. Modern Healthcare. October 9, 2019.
Nearly 1.5 million people had data exposed in healthcare breaches reported to the federal government last month. That is more than double the people who had data compromised in healthcare breaches in August.
2) Trump Administration Aims To Ease Anti-Kickback Rules. The Washington Post. October 9, 2019.
The Health and Human Services Secretary proposed updates to two statutes banning physicians from referring patients for other medical services if it would financially benefit them. Officials say the laws are important but outdated, where health providers are increasingly being paid for the quality of their care and how well they coordinate a patient’s care with other providers.
3) Telemedicine New Fraud Mechanism for Medical Equipment Scams? Kaiser Health News. October 9, 2019.
The fraudsters enlist health professionals — doctors, physician assistants, nurse practitioners — to contact people they’ve never met by telephone or video chat under the guise of a telemedicine consultation.
4) 6 Plead Guilty in $48 Million Drug Treatment Fraud Scheme. The Columbus Dispatch. October 5, 2019.
Prosecutors said the clinic between January 2015 and October 2017 falsely billed Medicaid nearly 135,000 times. They say those claims included inflated costs for services, billing for patients who hadn’t been medically diagnosed, and case management services for patients.
5) The Huge Waste in the US Health System? The New York Times. October 7, 2019.
A new study finds that roughly 20-25% of healthcare spending is wasteful. The estimated waste is $760 billion per year.
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