Health care fraud continues to rank as one of the crimes most commonly prosecuted in Florida, where authorities seek to recover billions of dollars lost due to scams. One of the reasons that this type of fraud is so prevalent can be found in the many types that exist.
Kickback schemes attract medical personnel
A kickback scheme in health care occurs when a medical professional receives something in exchange for providing a medical service. Kickback schemes can involve providing medical professionals with gifts, cash or equity, and these gifts influence the professional more than the patient’s best interests. A medical provider may receive a kickback from:
- Other doctors
- Pharmaceutical companies
- Health care companies
- Device manufacturer
Kickback schemes violent the Federal Anti-Kickback Statute, and quite often require a strong criminal defense strategy.
Criminals steal your identity
Medical identity theft occurs when someone uses a person’s medical identity to obtain care, funds or services. Medical identity theft can involve stealing a patient’s identity in order to receive medication, but it can also involve stealing a physician’s identity in order to gain access to prescriptions.
Billing for goods and services not provided is illegal
Medicaid and other health insurance companies deal with the health fraud that involves charging for goods and services that were never provided. A health care provider might charge for tests, X-rays or medications that were never provided, in order to increase the money they make off of a patient.
You can take steps to avoid getting charged with health care fraud
Being accused of health care fraud can have long-lasting repercussions on your professional and personal life. In order to avoid these accusations, always question any services that are provided to you as a patient. Carefully guard your insurance information, and make sure you always fill out claim forms in an area that protects your privacy.