Lynn Shapiro Snyder, a Senior Member of the Firm in the Health Care and Life Sciences Practice in the Washington, DC office, was quoted in BNA’s Health Care Fraud Report on the likelihood of an increase in state and federal government prosecutors seeking convictions of individuals for fraud, one of a number of trends expected to affect health care anti-fraud efforts this year.
In the article, "Individual Fraud, Off-Label Marketing to Face Increased Scrutiny in 2010," Snyder said she predicts that more individuals of all types will be included as defendants in health care fraud cases: ''The government is getting new legal rights that will make it easier to pursue individuals,'' she said.
Specifically, Snyder mentioned that the anti-kickback law is set to be amended so a person would not have to have actual knowledge of the law, or specific intent, to be found guilty.
She also expects an additional focus on prosecuting independent board members, not just the management board members, as part of an effort to encourage them to take their fiduciary responsibilities more seriously.
''This could create a chilling effect on people volunteering for board positions,'' she noted. ''It may create chilling effects on physicians and other health professionals participating in potentially improper financial relationships or other types of noncompliant conduct.''
Snyder foresees more scrutiny of the financial relationships between physicians and suppliers, with the proposed Physician Payment Sunshine Act requiring full disclosure of all relationships.
Electronic health records could usher in increased fraud, but Snyder noted that the very nature of the technology can help authorities to fight crime. ''Security breaches are the greatest risk to electronic medical records. Having such medical information in some type of electronic format makes it easier for government enforcement types to see patterns of potential misbehavior.''
In the article, “Individual Fraud, Off-Label Marketing to Face Increased Scrutiny in 2010,” Snyder said she predicts that more individuals of all types will be included as defendants in health care fraud cases: ”The government is getting new legal rights that will make it easier to pursue individuals,” she said.
