Health Law

OIG Publishes Physician Compliance "Roadmap"

By William Maruca

Responding to input from medical school deans and residency program directors in a recent survey, the OIG has published a plain-English compliance summary for new physicians entitled Roadmap for New Physicians: Avoiding Medicare and Medicaid Fraud and Abuse.  This 31-page document covers the following topics in a manner designed to educate new physicians in the basics of compliance and to sensitize them to the potential risks they will encounter in practice settings:

• Fraud & Abuse Laws (False Claims Act, Anti-Kickback statute, Stark physician self-referral statute, Medicare/Medicaid exclusion authority, Civil Monetary Penalties statute)
  • I. Physician Relationships with Payers
  • II. Physisican Relationships with Fellow Providers
  • III. Physician Relationships with Vendors
• Compliance Programs for Physicians
• Where To Go for Help
• What To Do If You Think You Have a Problem

The online version of the publication includes links to the various primary resources on the OIG web site, including the safe harbor regulations, advisory bulletins, compliance guidance, advisory opinions, and other useful links.

This document, which is downloadable for free at http://oig.hhs.gov/fraud/PhysicianEducation, can be used as the framework for compliance education for new and veteran physicians, and is a good starting point for the "newbie" to understand the legal landscape in the area of fraud and abuse.

Full post as published by Physician Law on November 05, 2010 (boomark / email).