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Here’s today’s list of news updates and stories you may have missed.
President Biden’s fiscal 2022 discretionary federal budget proposal, released on Friday, includes $131.7 billion for the Health and Human Services Department, which is 23.5% more than the department received for fiscal 2021. “COVID-19 shed light on how health inequities and lack of federal funding left communities vulnerable to crises,” said HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra in a statement. “The president’s funding request invests in America, addresses racial disparities in health care, tackles the opioid crisis, and puts us on a better footing to take on the next public health crisis.” Public health and equity are key focuses of the proposal overall. Here are some of the other recent headlines you might have missed.
Opinion: Four crucial lessons for improving Covid-19 testing
msn.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from msn.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
OIG Warns Telehealth Industry: With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility | Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP
jdsupra.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from jdsupra.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Wednesday, March 10, 2021
On February 4, 2021, the Department of Justice (“DOJ”), Office of Public Affairs, issued a Press Release (the “DOJ Press Release”) announcing that Kelly Wolfe, President of Regency, Inc., a medical billing company located in Florida, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud through a “pernicious telefraud scheme”[1] involving fraudulent Medicare and CHAMPVA (Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs) claims for medically unnecessary durable medical equipment (“DME”) supplies. As a result of Wolfe’s criminal plea, Wolfe could face up to 13 years in federal prison.
In addition to her criminal plea, Wolfe and Regency agreed to a civil settlement of up to $20,332,516 to resolve allegations that Wolfe and her co-conspirators violated the federal False Claims Act and the federal Anti-Kickback Statute by bribing physicians to write prescriptions for DME supplies based upon non-exist