On March 15, 2022, President Biden signed into law the $1.5 trillion Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2022 (the “Omnibus Bill”). Included in the 2,700+ page Omnibus Bill is an extension of Medicare coverage of professional consultations, office visits, and office psychiatry services conducted via telemedicine for 151 days after the…
Laboratory tests play a critical part of the healthcare system. Ordering and billing for these tests, however, is not always cut-and-dry. Compliance with federal laws and rules (like the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA), the Anti-Kickback Statute (AKS), and the Eliminating Kickbacks in Recovery Act (EKRA) – not to mention…
The Department of Justice (“DOJ”) has reported that in 2020, the government prosecuted dozens of laboratory owners and operators for anti-kickback related offenses responsible for hundreds of millions in alleged federal health care program loses. DOJ recouped a total of $1.8 billion dollars in connection with healthcare fraud allegations. Since…
Alere Inc. and Alere San Diego Inc. (collectively “Alere”) have come under fire recently by the U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) and other government agencies, agreeing to settle several rounds of accusations of False Claims Act violations for a total of $198.75 million. The first series of settlements was announced…
