A congressional panel is grilling the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and the Office of Inspector General about what they do to prevent provider fraud and abuse in Medicare and Medicaid, according to the Dallas Morning News. Specifically, Congress wants to know what information the agencies collect to vet providers who apply for federal funds and how the agencies share provider information. The questions came after a Texas hospital chain collected nearly $18 million in economic stimulus incentive payments to automate medical records but allegedly never used the bulk of the money for that purpose. Further, the hospitals received funding despite billing fraud allegations dating back to 2008. Article