The federal government works diligently to root out healthcare fraud, and it has vast resources to prosecute violators. Medicare, Medicaid, and Healthcare fraud allegations have the potential to destroy careers and devastate families. Those who are charged face both professional and personal loss in the form of loss of income, loss of professional reputation, loss of professional licensing, and oftentimes the loss of liberty.
If you are under investigation for or charged with Medicare, Medicaid, or Healthcare fraud, we can help. Call our team of federal Medicare, Medicaid, and Healthcare fraud defense attorneys at Stracci Law Group immediately by calling (219) 525-1000 or by contacting us online to schedule a consultation.
Stracci Law Group Is the Federal Healthcare Fraud Defense Team You Can Trust
We offer the following advantages:
Mitigation of legal risk: Medicare and Medicaid fraud law is complex. It involves federal and state regulations and has both civil and criminal aspects. One of the greatest challenges for Medicare and Medicaid fraud defense lawyers is convincing the government to focus on civil sanctions, like repayment and damages, instead of criminal charges which more often than not result in prison sentences.
Industry familiarity: Medicare and Medicaid fraud attorneys must be experienced in billing and coding issues like upcoding and unbundling, and know how to distinguish a valid claim from one involving medically unnecessary or unperformed services.
Diverse team: Defending Medicare and Medicaid fraud cases is both complex and document-intensive. The majority of cases require scrutiny of tens of thousands of medical, billing, and coding records. Our Medicare and Medicaid fraud defense team includes aggressive federal litigators and longtime federal criminal defense attorneys who are familiar with federal and state regulations and experienced in reviewing voluminous records to decipher exactly what happened and who is responsible.
Healthcare Practices that We Serve in Northwest Indiana
Federal enforcement of all types of healthcare fraud laws is on the rise. Medical providers and related businesses bearing the brunt of this renewed vigilance include:
- Doctors
- Nurses
- Nurse Practitioners
- Pharmacists
- Physical Therapists
- Medical Students
- Medical Laboratories
- Medical Equipment Providers
- Specialty Practice Groups
- Ambulance and Transport Services
- Other Licensed Medical Professionals
Common Forms Of Healthcare Fraud
There are a number of avenues open to the federal government’s pursuit of Medicare, Medicaid, and Healthcare fraud allegations that will require you to attain a medical billing fraud lawyer. Some of the most common are:
Upcoding: Billing Medicare or Medicaid for services under a billing code that pays more than the code assigned to the services.
Unbundling: Billing Medicare or Medicaid for services under multiple billing codes that should be billed together under a single billing code.
Services: Billing Medicare or Medicaid for services that were not provided, or were provided but lacked medical necessity.
Kickbacks: Giving money or anything of value to induce or reward medical referrals to a provider that receives reimbursement from Medicare or Medicaid.
If you are accused of any of the listed practices, you need a Medicare, Medicaid, or federal healthcare defense attorney to protect your interests.
Is Your Medicare, Medicaid, or Healthcare Fraud Case Civil or Criminal?
Medicaid, Medicare, and Healthcare fraud cases can be filed as civil cases, criminal cases, or both.
If your case starts with the filing of a lawsuit under the False Claims Act, it is a civil case. Both government agencies and everyday people can file False Claims Act civil lawsuits. Although civil lawsuits don’t expose providers to prison sentences, financial penalties like restitution, treble damages, and fines, can easily add up to millions of dollars.
When the government believes a medical provider billed government programs in a particularly egregious manner, it usually files criminal charges. Those convicted of Medicare, Medicaid, or other Healthcare Fraud criminal crimes risk losing their medical or professional licensing and the ability to bill Medicare and Medicaid for their services.
For some providers, it is a career-ending event. In addition, those convicted of Medicaid, Medicare, or other Healthcare fraud crimes face a recommended prison sentence and restitution payments based on monetary loss. The federal government typically alleges crimes occurring over a period of years, not days or months, which exposes medical professionals to significant restitution payments and prison sentences.
Threats of federal criminal prosecution are always real. The federal government charges more than a thousand healthcare fraud cases across the country each year. Our Medicare, Medicaid, and Health care defense lawyers can help you fight back.
Healthcare Fraud Criminal Penalties You Can Expect
Depending on the circumstances and seriousness of the charged crime, a conviction exposes you to a variety of penalties, including:
- Incarceration
- Restitution
- Fines
- Criminal Forfeiture
- Loss of Professional Licensure
- Exclusion from Medicare and Medicaid
Most federal healthcare fraud criminal cases are serious felonies that carry the potential for long prison sentences, restitution, fines, and criminal forfeiture of money or property. However, the federal courts consider a myriad of factors when deciding the appropriate sentence, including your own personal history and characteristics. That means you need a team of Medicare, Medicaid, or Healthcare fraud attorneys known for their federal sentencing advocacy. Our team prides itself on its sentencing advocacy and works to develop and present federal judges with a basis for them to impose the most lenient sentence possible. Contact us today.
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