The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) recently issued guidance entitled “Collecting, Using, or Sharing Consumer Health Information? Look to HIPAA, the FTC Act, and the Health Breach Notification Rule.” The guidance points out that while businesses that collect, use, or share consumer health information are (or should be) accustomed to complying with HIPAA and its Privacy
Telehealth Awareness Week
The American Telemedicine Association (ATA) has announced that its third annual Telehealth Awareness Week will take place September 17-23, 2023. The official website for the event states:
“During the week, the ATA invites telehealth solution providers, hospital systems and medical practices, patient advocacy leaders, policymakers, and other stakeholders to highlight the need to establish
OIG Advisory Opinion Warns on IONM Company “Surgeon Deals”
On August 18, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General (OIG) published an Advisory Opinion warning that a common arrangement under which surgeons profit from referrals of their patients for intraoperative neuromonitoring (IONM) services can violate the federal Anti-Kickback Statute (AKS). The Advisory Opinion, the first significant public commentary on
NY Pharmacy Owner and Manager Indicted for Medicaid Fraud
New York State Attorney General Letitia James recently announced that the owner and manager of Santiago Pharmacy in Flushing, Queens, were indicted for paying kickbacks to Medicaid recipients in exchange for filling their HIV prescriptions at the pharmacy.
Juan Poveda, the owner, and Javier Burbano, the pharmacy manager, were charged with grand larceny, health care
NJ Psychiatric Practice Fined for HIPAA Privacy Rule Violation
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights (OCR) recently announced that Manasa Health Center in Kendall Park, New Jersey entered into a Resolution Agreement and Corrective Action Plan to resolve a HIPAA Privacy Rule violation. The psychiatric practice, owned by Dr. Nidagalle Gowda, inexplicably disclosed four patients’ protected health information
Former NY Nurse Sentenced for Fake Vax Cards
On June 9, Steven Rodriguez, a former nurse from Long Beach, New York, was sentenced in federal court to 2-1/2 years in prison for selling at least 300 fake COVID-19 vaccination cards. Rodriguez and a co-conspirator from Queens, Jia Liu, had pleaded guilty to the scam. Liu will be sentenced in September.
To cover up
PA Therapist Fined for HIPAA Right of Access Violation
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced on May 8 that David Mente, a Pittsburgh psychotherapist, has paid $15,000 to settle a violation of the HIPAA Privacy Rule. OCR has been pursuing its so-called Right of Access Initiative since 2019, as previously discussed here.
Incredibly, some healthcare
Yale New Haven Reaches $560K FCA Settlement
The U.S Attorney’s Office for the District of Connecticut announced on May 9 that Yale New Haven Health Services Corp. and Northeast Medical Group, Inc. have paid $560,718.48 to resolve federal and state False Claims Act (FCA) allegations. The hospital system allegedly submitted claims to Medicare and Medicaid for services provided by mid-level providers
Fraud Week: CT Behavioral Health Providers Sentenced
We’ll wrap up this edition of Fraud Week with a look at two Connecticut behavioral health providers, one bad and one very, very bad. First, Alicia Thompkins, a social worker from Hartford, pleaded guilty on April 27 to Medicaid fraud, but received only a three-year suspended jail sentence and an order to pay $140,000 in
Fraud Week: Garden State Fraud Roundup; Much Compounding
Here’s a selection of recent healthcare frauds from New Jersey. On April 17, John Sher of Margate was sentenced to 37 months in prison and ordered to pay $2.77 million in restitution and $327,987 in forfeiture for defrauding New Jersey state and local health benefits programs and other insurers. Sher and a co-conspirator recruited state