Physician Law Blog

The Affordable Care Act (PPACA) expanded the False Claims Act (FCA) to require providers to report and return any overpayment within 60 days of identification. Just what “identification” means under this rule has been unclear until now. With the SDNY’s recent ruling in Kane v. Healthfirst, Inc., No. 1:11-cv-02325-ER (SDNY Aug. 3, 2015), there is now guidance. The Kane decision, a whistleblower/false claims case, clarifies what constitutes “identification” for purposes of triggering FCA liability related to the 60 day rule to report overpayments.

On May 7, 2015, the Department of Justice reported settlement with 16 separate hospitals for medically unnecessary or unreasonable psychotherapy services. The claims under scrutiny were Intensive Outpatient Psychotherapy (IOP) services, which represent a variety of treatment methods. The services, while billed to Medicare by the providers, were performed on the providers’ behalf by Allegiance health Management, a post-acute healthcare management company.