Richard Payerchin

COVID-19 false billings and theft worth $149 million led to federal charges against 21 defendants across the United States, according the U.S. Department of Justice.

 and a number of federal agencies to prosecute COVID-19-related 

“The Department of Justice’s Health Care Fraud Unit and our partners are dedicated to rooting out schemes that have exploited the pandemic,” Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division said in a press release. “Today’s enforcement action reinforces our commitment to using all available tools to hold accountable medical professionals, corporate executives, and others who have placed greed above care during an unprecedented public health emergency.”

The schemes took place in nine districts around the country.

Several cases involved defendants who allegedly offered COVID-19 testing to induce patients to provide their personal identifying information and saliva or blood samples, then used the information for fraudulent Medicare claims, according to the Justice Department.

In the Central District of California, two owners of a clinical laboratory were charged with a health care fraud, kickback, and money laundering scheme for 

 of more than $125 million for phony COVID-19 and respiratory pathogen tests. The proceeds were allegedly laundered through shell corporations in the United States, transferred to foreign countries, and used to purchase real estate and luxury items.

In separate cases in the District of Maryland and the Eastern District of New York, owners of medical clinics allegedly obtained confidential information from patients seeking COVID-19 testing at drive-thru testing sites, then submitted fraudulent claims for office visits that did not occur.

In another scheme, defendants allegedly exploited policies that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) put in place to enable increased access to care during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In the Southern District of Florida, one medical professional was charged with a health care fraud, wire fraud, and kickback scheme for allegedly billing for sham telemedicine encounters that did not occur and agreeing to order unnecessary genetic testing in exchange for access to telehealth patients.

The CMS Center for Program Integrity separately announced an additional 28 administrative actions against providers for their alleged involvement in fraud, waste, and abuse schemes related to the delivery of care for COVID-19, and schemes that capitalize on the public health emergency.

Two defendants were charged for schemes targeting the Provider Relief Fund (PRF), part of the March 2020 Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. In total, 10 defendants have been charged with crimes related to misappropriating PRF monies intended for frontline medical providers and three have pleaded guilty.

Investigators announced charges against manufacturers and distributors of fake COVID-19 vaccination record cards.

In the Northern District of California, three defendants were charged in a scheme to sell homeoprophylaxis immunizations and falsify COVID-19 vaccination record cards to make it appear customers received authorized vaccines.

One defendant, a director of pharmacy at a northern California hospital, obtained real lot numbers for the Moderna vaccine to falsify COVID-19 vaccination record cards.

In a separate case in the Western District of Washington, one manufacturer was charged in the multistate distribution of fake COVID-19 vaccination record cards after allegedly telling an undercover federal agent, “until I get caught and go to jail, [expletive] it I’m taking the money, ha! I don’t care.”

This article was originally published on Medical Economics®.  

Articles

Feds say alleged scammers “placed greed above care” in pandemic.

Justice Department announces charges for alleged $149M in COVID-19 fraud

Physicians are spending an estimated 4.5 hours a day completing electronic health records (EHR), which “leaves less time to attend directly to patients,” according to a new study.

 now are used in 90% of office-based physicians across the United States. Data from published studies showed a median daily physician EHR time ranging from 3.5 to six hours. Logging large amounts of 

 for doctors and patients, co-author James Kahn, MD, MPH said in an online statement.

“Although the EHR can improve access to medical information, it is a data-hungry beast that exacts a huge toll as measured in hours, clinical focus, communication quality, and quite likely clinical outcomes,” 

 for Physicians for a National Health Program. The organization advocates for a universal, comprehensive single-payer health program.

The researchers aimed to estimate the EHR time burden in the United States and potential savings with streamlined records. They compiled information from 10 articles that used direct observation and computer-based methods to track EHR use in family medicine, ambulatory care, primary care, general pediatrics, internal medicine, cardiology, orthopedics, endocrinology, geriatrics, psychiatry, rheumatology and ophthalmology.

“There was no relationship between specialty and result,” the study said. Time dedicated for EHR in the United States was significantly higher than in other countries, where reported daily EHR time was one hour.

, “How Much Time Do Physicians Spend in the EHR?” was published on the website KevinMD.com.

This article was originally published on Medical Economics®. 

Study compiles data, finds multiple specialties affected.

Physicians spend 4.5 hours a day on electronic health records

Electronic cigarettes may help people quit smoking, but physicians need more information to talk with patients about them, according to a new study.

, but numerous studies suggest they have lower levels of toxins than cigarettes and cigars. A survey of doctors from 2018 and 2019 found more than 60% incorrectly believed that all tobacco products are equally harmful, according to the researchers.

“As the evidence grows showing e-cigarettes as potentially effective for smoking cessation, they may play a pivotal role in reducing use of cigarettes and subsequently tobacco-caused disease,” study author Michael Steinberg, MD, said in a 

“It’s important to understand physicians’ perspectives on e-cigarettes as a means for harm reduction,” said Steinberg, who is medical director of the Rutgers Tobacco Dependence Program at the Center for Tobacco Studies and division chief in the Department of Medicine at the Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School.

Instead of burning tobacco, e-cigarettes use a heated liquid containing nicotine. They are known as vapes, vaporizers, vape pens, hookah pens and other names, a formally as electronic nicotine delivery systems.

The study noted the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has not approved e-cigarettes as a cessation device.

Many people ask their physicians about using them as an alternative to tobacco cigarettes or as a way to help them stop smoking. Nearly 70% of the physicians reported patients have asked them about e-cigarettes, and one-third said they were asked in the past 30 days.

“These findings show it is critical to address physicians’ misperceptions and educate them on e-cigarettes’ efficacy, particularly correcting their misperceptions that all tobacco products are equally harmful, as opposed to the fact that combusted tobacco is by far the most dangerous,” lead author Cristine Delnevo, said in a press release. Delnevo is director of the Rutgers Center for Tobacco Studies and professor of Health Behavior, Society and Policy in the Rutgers School of Public Health.

, “Communication Between U.S. Physicians and Patients Regarding Electronic Cigarette Use,” was published in the journal 

Researchers surveyed 2,058 U.S. physicians about their communication with patients about e-cigarettes, and about hypothetical examples.

The researchers asked how they would advise two different patients who wanted to quit smoking: a young woman who is a lighter smoker and had not yet tried to quit and an older man who smoked heavily and had tried to quit many times using different methods.

The study found that physicians were significantly more likely to recommend e-cigarettes for the heavy smoker while recommending FDA-approved medications, like nicotine gum or lozenges, for the light smoker.

This article originally appeared on Medical Economics®. 

Devices could help patients reduce or stop using tobacco, researchers say.

Physicians need more info on e-cigarettes to communicate with patients

A new federal grant program aims to train 13,000 new and current community health workers to expand the public health workforce.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced the Community Health worker and Health Support Worker Training Program with $226.5 million in available grant money for education.

The program “will increase the number of 

 workers who play a critical role in connecting people to care, including COVID care; mental health and substance use disorder prevention, treatment and recovery services; 

; and other important health services,” according to HHS.

President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris are “committed to building a 

 workforce — the first line of defense in preventing disease, safeguarding health and keeping the public safe,” HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra said in a 

“This funding will support these health workers — who know their communities and have their trust— as they keep their neighbors healthy, including throughout the COVID-19 response, by helping patients enroll in vital services, and by providing community education, outreach and support,” Becerra said.

The latest effort will support training and apprenticeships to help more people enter the health workforce to connect people to care and support. The workers will help ensure patients follow up on providers’ recommendations and focus on preventive and protective factors that can improve health and well-being, according to HHS.

“At a time when too much misinformation is clouding the health care landscape, we are investing in training community health workers who are trusted voices in their communities,” HRSA Administrator Carole Johnson said in a press release. “This new program will grow and train this essential part of our health care workforce and connect them to the communities and employers who need them most.”

Community and academic health centers, health professional schools and state and local governments may qualify for 

 for the training. Federal regulators anticipate awarding about 

 each for use in performance periods running September 2022 to September 2025.

This article was originally published on Medical Econoomics®. 

‘First line of defense’ has community trust to ‘keep neighbors healthy.’

HHS announces program to train 13,000 public health workers

Mental health, vaccines and federal research agencies all will see “significant improvements” in funding in President Joe Biden’s proposed 

, according to the American College of Physicians.

“We have seen over the past couple of years how important governmental support for health care and public health is to ensure the health of the American public,” ACP President George M. Abraham, MD, MPH, said in a 

. “We are glad to see that President Biden’s budget proposal recognizes the important role of health and health care services and programs.”

The organization praised a half dozen provisions in 

 the president introduced on March 28. The next budget came less than two weeks after the president signed into law the 2022 national spending plan to fund the government through Sept. 30, 2022.

The fiscal year 2023 budget requests $127.3 billion in discretionary funding for the federal Department of Health and Human Services.

It will have “significant support for the 

“Mental health care was strained prior to the COVID-19 pandemic and the increase in mental health conditions over the past two years has greatly exacerbated the strain,” Abraham said in the news release. “ACP believes that better support for mental health care professionals and services, as well as the integration of behavioral health with primary care, is key to supporting the health and well-being of our patients.”

A new Vaccines for Adults Program for uninsured adults to access 

 recommended by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices at no cost.

“We have seen over the past year how critical widespread use of vaccines is to maintaining public health. We need this sort of program to ensure that vaccine uptake is as extensive as possible,” Abraham said.

There is “a major increase in funding for public health systems” and local agencies to improve public health, pandemic preparedness, and biodefense, according to ACP.

The budget includes $9.9 billion in discretionary funding for the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It is $2.8 billion over the 2021 enacted level, according to the budget.

Increased funding to $470 million for initiatives to improve maternal health and to increase health equity.

The budget noted “the United States has the highest maternal mortality rate among development nations, with an unacceptably high mortality rate for Black, American Indian/Alaska Native, and other women of color.”

A major increase in funding for the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health to speed the development and practical application of health care breakthroughs.

The budget includes a $5 billion investment for the agency, known as ARPA-H, with an initial focus on cancer and diseases such as diabetes and Alzheimer’s, according to the budget.

Adequate funding for key federal agencies and programs, like the workforce programs administered by the Health Resources and Services Administration, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, and the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT. This includes increased funding for public health initiatives like the Title X family planning program and gun violence research.

“ACP believes that increased investments in public health and federal health programs are needed to ensure the health of all Americans,” Abraham said. “We look forward to working with the administration and with Congress to advance these 

Government help needed ‘to ensure the health of the American public.’

 ACP praises health care spending in president’s proposed 2023 federal budget

The time is right for research that fuels a transformation in 

 with better outcomes for patients and greater fulfillment for physicians across the United States.

Lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic and influential reports have set the stage for primary care to thrive in the next decade, said authors Arlene S. Bierman, MD, MS, Sebastian T. Tong, MD, PMH, and Robert J. McNellis, MPH, PA. They published the special report “

: The Future of Primary Care Research,” in 

Making that happen “will require wise investments in primary care research,” the report said.

“Newly generated evidence needs to be rapidly incorporated into the design of the delivery system, clinical care, and community interventions,” the authors said. “Primary care research can provide the evidence to help stem the twin epidemics of clinician burnout and lack of trust in the health system.

A number of resources already exist to guide future research, including the federal Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). The authors credited the agency for “a pivotal role” supporting 

, but noted they did not proffer an official position of AHRQ or the federal Department of Health and Human Services.

Patients will be involved as partners to identify research priorities, “outcomes to measure and ways to redesign care.”

Technology must be part of the process, along with data on processes and outcomes harnessed through electronic health records, patient registries and health information exchanges, the authors said.

Describing a vision of the future, the authors identified seven core attributes

Those include “primary care centeredness,” or recognizing “

 is the foundation for all other health care.” All people should have access to comprehensive, coordinated and high quality care, they said.

Person and family centeredness, caring for patients “in the context of their lived family, social and community experiences.”

Community centeredness, promoting health of communities by engaging community organizations with a shared mission.

Advancing health equity, eliminating structural inequities in access, quality and outcomes of care.

Digital health solutions, integrating health information technology to support primary care.

Aligning payment, allocating resources to support primary care.

Workforce development, creating teams with members improving patient care while reducing individual workloads and burnout.