The Office of Inspector General (OIG) recently issued a new favorable OIG Advisory Opinion, concluding that, although the proposed arrangement (“Proposed Arrangement”) between a Medicare Supplement insurer (“MediGap Plan”)...more
In a recent Advisory Opinion No. 23-11 (Advisory Opinion), the Office of Inspector General (OIG) opined that it will not impose administrative sanctions against a clinical trial sponsor covering up to $2,000 of a clinical...more
The Office of Inspector General (OIG) recently issued two identical favorable OIG Advisory Opinions, concluding that, although the proposed arrangement (“Proposed Arrangement”) between a Medicare Supplement insurer (“MediGap...more
On October 25, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (OIG) published Advisory Opinion 23-08, in which it refused to approve a proposal by a manufacturer and distributor of hearing...more
On Oct. 25, 2023, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) for the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) issued an unfavorable opinion in response to a manufacturer’s proposal to offer and provide a free compatible...more
On October 20, 2023, OIG issued a negative Advisory Opinion in response to a proposal from a cochlear implant manufacturer (Requestor) to offer and provide free compatible hearing aids to certain patients (Proposed...more
The Office of Inspector General in the Department of Health and Human Services (“OIG”) recently issued Advisory Opinion 23-08 in which it concluded that a proposed arrangement involving a supplier’s durable medical equipment,...more
Does your practice pay to advertise in online directories? Or do you contract with a website to allow patients to book appointments or look for services? If the answer to these questions is “yes,” you may be interested in a...more
The Office of Inspector General for the Department of Health and Human Services (OIG) recently issued yet another favorable Advisory Opinion on the use of gift cards to motivate patients to receive medically necessary or...more
Hear directly from the enforcement community - Want to gain insight into properly monitoring, detecting, investigating, and managing violations? Join us virtually at HCCA’s Annual Healthcare Enforcement Compliance...more
Key Points - Patient outcomes studies suggest a clinical benefit of co-pay programs, and a negative impact of co-pay accumulator programs. Co-pay programs remain unavailable to participants in federal...more
On May 26, 2022, OIG issued a modification of Advisory Opinion 20-02 (2020 Opinion), which was originally issued on January 15, 2020. In the 2020 Opinion, OIG issued a favorable advisory opinion regarding a pharmaceutical...more
Last week, OIG posted Advisory Opinion No. 22-06 regarding a biopharmaceutical company’s (BioPharm Co.) arrangement to provide free genetic testing and genetic counseling services to patients potentially eligible for...more
On March 2, 2022, the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (OIG) published Advisory Opinion No. 22-04 (the “Opinion”), analyzing a program whereby the Requestor provides comprehensive digital...more
On February 14, 2022, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) issued Advisory Opinion No. 22-03 (Advisory Opinion) regarding a home health agency’s (Requestor) proposal to pay nurse aide certification tuition costs on behalf of...more
On January 19, 2022, the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (“OIG”) released a favorable advisory opinion, OIG Advisory Opinion No. 22-01 (the “Opinion”), analyzing a proposed expansion of...more
Looking for compliance training and networking in your area? HCCA’s Regional Healthcare Compliance Conferences offer practitioners convenient, local compliance training, including updates on the latest news in regulatory...more
On December 16, 2021, OIG issued an advisory opinion (Advisory Opinion No. 21-20) to a requestor (Requestor) regarding a proposal to create an online search platform for users to find and contact home-based health care...more
On December 6, 2021, OIG issued an advisory opinion (Advisory Opinion No. 21-19) to a pharmaceutical manufacturer regarding its arrangement to provide free eye drops to patients who are prescribed one of the manufacturer’s...more
On September 30, 2021, OIG posted Advisory Opinion No. 21-14 regarding a chiropractor’s proposal to extend an existing discount program covering a package of services to include federal health care program beneficiaries. OIG...more
In a previous post published on the Washington Legal Foundation’s Legal Pulse blog, Goodwin Partners Matt Wetzel and William Jackson discussed the potential implications of a high-profile recent lawsuit lodged by Pfizer...more
Last week, OIG posted Advisory Opinions Nos. 21-03, 21-04, and 21-05 relating to three near-identical arrangements between Medigap plans and Preferred Hospital Organizations (PHOs). The arrangements involve (i) a discount on...more
The Situation: Telehealth services continue to evolve and show promise for improving quality care, care coordination, and access to services while often demonstrating cost effective options for care. The Action: The Office...more
In our November 25, 2000 Healthcare Law Blog article, “Big Changes for Health Care Fraud and Abuse: HHS Gifts Providers Updates to the Stark Law and the AKS, Just in Time for the Holidays,” we discussed the advanced...more
While health care entities often want to provide free or discounted items or services to patients (e.g., free transportation, co-payment waivers, free supplies), these free or discounted items or services pose risk under both...more