Healthcare fraud program boasts record returns to government

Healthcare Financial Management, Dec, 2003

The national Health Care Fraud and Abuse Control Program (HCFAC), established as part of HIPAA, has reported that its FY02 returns to the government are the largest since the program's inception,

The federal government won or negotiated more than $1.8 billion in judgments, settlements, and administrative impositions in healthcare fraud cases and proceedings. As a consequence of these activities, as well as some from prior years, the federal government collected $1.6 billion in cases resulting from healthcare fraud and abuse, of which about $1.4 billion was returned to the Medicare Trust Fund, and $59 million was recovered as the federal share of Medicaid restitution.

It should be emphasized that some of the judgments, settlements, and administrative impositions in 2002 will result in collections in future years, just as some of the collections in 2002 are attributable to actions from prior years.

In addition, 361 criminal indictments were filed in healthcare fraud cases in FY02, and a total of 480 defendants were convicted for healthcare fraud-related crimes during the year.

To read the details of the HCFAC activities for FY02, go to www.oig.hhs.gov/publications/hcfac.html.>

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