Federal law would further fight government healthcare fraud

Well familiar with the varieties of such fraud, a Florida senator has filed two bills aimed at further tightening the noose on fraud against government healthcare programs. Sen. Mel Martinez (R-FL), whose state is the national leader in crimes against government healthcare organizations, has been holding a hearing on the topic this week.

Martinez has filed one bill that would end the use of Social Security Numbers as ID numbers for Medicare beneficiaries, as well as call for a new review of providers and suppliers along with real-time analysis of claims data.

The second bill would require HHS to publish Medicaid payment data to a public website. The de-identified data would help authorities search out and prosecute fraud, along with helping researchers and others find ways to cut down on fraud and waste.

To learn more about the new bills:
- read this Modern Healthcare piece [1] (reg. req.)

Related Articles:
Miami docs, medical workers charged with Medicare fraud [2]
FL health system settles Medicare fraud charges [3]
South Florida stands out as leader in Medicare fraud [4]
CMS fights fraud in CA and FL [5]