Birmingham Medical News: Fraud & Abuse Prevention on the Rise

It seems like there is not a day that goes by that I do not read a news article, press release, or e-mail blurb about a recent arrest or conviction concerning Medicare and/or Medicaid fraud and abuse. As evidenced by the statistics, enforcement related to fraud and abuse is increasing. Convictions under the Health Care Fraud and Abuse Control Program increased by over 27% between 2009 and 2011. The number of defendants facing criminal charges related to health care fraud and abuse increased by 74% from 2008 until 2011 (821 defendants versus 1,430 defendants). Thus, fraud and abuse enforcement is on the rise, and I suspect that is a trend that we will see continue.