Health insurance coverage for tens of millions of Americans and hundreds of thousands of Minnesotans could be wiped away pending the outcome of a legal case heard by a federal appeals court on July 9. A total of 18 Republican-led … Read More
ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) — Just over 300,000 low-income Virginia adults have enrolled in the state’s expanded Medicaid program. Gov. Ralph Northam made the announcement Wednesday at a health center in Alexandria. State officials have previously estimated that roughly 400,000 adults … Read More
BRECKENRIDGE — Former Silverthorne dentist Bonifacio Guillena III, 42, of Greeley, has been sentenced to three years in prison after pleading guilty in January to possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance, a class 3 felony, according to a … Read More
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — A blood-testing company filed for bankruptcy and says it’s cutting jobs because Medicare payments have been withheld over allegations of fraud. The Richmond Times-Dispatch reports True Health Diagnostics LLC filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection this … Read More
Alabama-based Encompass Health Corporation (now HealthSouth Corp.) has agreed to pay $48 million to settle Medicare fraud allegations. According to prosecutors, Encompass’s Inpatient Rehabilitation Facilities (IRFs) falsified “disuse myopathy” diagnostics in order to maintain their standing as high-reimbursement Medicare-approved IRFs. … Read More
The federal government hit Medoc Health Services with a lawsuit alleging the Dallas-based pharmacy services provider filed hundreds of false claims and engaged in a kickback scheme worth millions of dollars. The complaint comes about a year after the FBI … Read More
SAN JUAN – Over 700 military, state, and county employee volunteers gave their time to serve the community during the 21st Annual Operation Lone Star in the Rio Grande Valley held July 22-26, 2019. OLS is a full-scale emergency exercise … Read More
The HHS inspector general could soon call on Florida to refund the federal government $436 million in Medicaid funds that were improperly paid to the country’s largest public hospital, according to a draft report obtained by POLITICO. The independent auditor’s … Read More
A former Warren dentist received a suspended prison sentence Tuesday for Medicaid fraud after making arrangements to pay about $136,032 in damages, restitution and fines within a week. John Steven Durmon, 60, had been charged with four counts of fraud … Read More
Four men accused of scamming Medicare out of $150 million that funded a lavish lifestyle with premium San Antonio Spurs tickets and Louis Vuitton clothing will go to trial in early August. U.S. District Judge Rolando Olvera ruled last Tuesday … Read More
The medical director and two operators of a Houston medical clinic have been indicted on several charges related to their alleged involvement in a multimillion-dollar fraud scheme, according to the Department of Justice. Douglas Sharp, DO, medical director of Verimed … Read More
Operation Lone Star, the annual emergency preparedness exercise coordinated by the Texas Department of State Health Services, returns to six South Texas sites July 22-26. Among the free health services available at all locations are child immunizations, hearing and vision screenings, diabetes and blood pressure screenings, and sports physicals. In addition, the Rio Grande … Read More
A federal judge on Friday upheld the Trump administration’s expansion of health insurance plans that don’t meet ObamaCare’s coverage requirements. U.S. District Judge Richard Leon in Washington ruled against the insurance companies that sued the administration in an attempt to … Read More
Comprehensive Pain and Headache Treatment Centers, LLC and its owner, Dr. Mark Thimineur, have entered into a civil settlement agreement with the federal and state governments to resolve allegations that they improperly billed the Medicare and Connecticut Medicaid programs. The … Read More
A Bridgeport, CT city woman has been sentenced to seven months in prison for her role in identity theft and health care fraud scams, according to a statement from federal prosecutors. Nikkita Chesney, 46, will also serve three years of … Read More
Has there been a decline in ethical values in the dental profession? How can dental assistants change this perception? By always being ethical and a good example in the practice. I have thought about that quote many times during my … Read More
Alaska Gov. Michael J. Dunleavy’s cuts to the state Medicaid budget have providers holding their breaths as they wait to see the impacts. Dunleavy vetoed about $58 million of general fund support for Medicaid programs from the Legislature’s enacted budget … Read More
The Windham County Dental Center hasn’t even been open for two months yet and it has already seen more than 110 patients to whom it’s provided more than 400 services. “One of the most common services we offer is extraction,” … Read More
Hundreds of underserved people received free dental services at the Texas Mission of Mercy Mobile Dental Clinic Friday at Texas High School Gymnasium. The clinic, which is a partnership between CHRISTUS St. Michael Health System and the Texas Dental Association … Read More
Even at the height of anti-“Obamacare” sentiment, most politicians agreed that making health insurance more readily available for children in low-income families — particularly those whose parents worked but still couldn’t afford coverage — was a good thing. And for … Read More
The Department of Health Care Service’s new program designed to expand access to care for Medi-Cal patients has awarded $10.5 million to 40 dentists to pay student loan debt. Approximately 1,300 health care providers, including 350 dentists, applied to the … Read More
Over an early September weekend in 2017, some 850 visitors showed up to the University of Maryland (UMD) basketball arena in College Park. But the attendees weren’t there to watch a game, they came to receive free dental care through … Read More
On the left was Judge Carolyn Dineen King, an appointee of Jimmy Carter; on the right sat Judge Kurt Engelhardt, a nominee of Donald Trump, and in the center sat Judge Jennifer Walker Elrod, the George W. Bush appointee expected … Read More
A panel of federal judges in New Orleans sharply questioned attorneys defending the Affordable Care Act on Tuesday, increasing the chances that the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals may throw out at least part of the 2010 law, often … Read More
Joe Biden is now doing what Democrats always do when asked to defend their stance on immigration: He’s pretending he doesn’t support the thing he just advocated. All the Democrats on stage at the second Democratic debate last week, including … Read More
McALLEN — The owner and an employee of a now-closed durable medical equipment business each pleaded guilty to healthcare fraud charges, court records show. Standing before U.S. District Judge Micaela Alvarez, Everardo Villarreal and Delilah Rae Robles each pleaded guilty … Read More
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The U.S. Department of Justice says there is a “live case or controversy” involving its support of a decision striking down former President Barack Obama’s health care law because the government continues to enforce the statute. Department … Read More
HUNTSVILLE, Texas (AP) — The first thing you notice about Richard Buehning is his salt-and-pepper beard. Shaggy and thick, it covers his mouth — and his lack of teeth. For the better part of two decades, that toothless grin has … Read More
HOUSTON (AP) – Federal health officials have sanctioned a Houston hospital after a state investigation found inadequate care in a case involving a patient’s death. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services notified public hospital network, Harris Health System, Wednesday … Read More
BIRMINGHAM, Ala., June 28, 2019 /PRNewswire/ — Encompass Health Corporation (EHC) (“Encompass Health” or the “Company”) today settled a seven-year False Claims Act (“FCA”) investigation by the Department of Justice (“DOJ”), together with related qui tam or “whistleblower” lawsuits, for … Read More
Mass.-based laboratory-testing service and its owners paid more than $1.5 million to resolve allegations that they overbilled Connecticut’s Medicaid program, prosecutors say. Clinical Science Laboratory Inc. (CSL), of Mansfield, Mass., and its owners Stanley Elfbaum and Louis Amoruso entered into … Read More
Many of my media colleagues have been lauding President Donald Trump for signing an executive order earlier this week directing the federal Department of Health and Human Services to require health care providers to inform patients in advance of the … Read More
The National Reined Cow Horse Association, organizer of the Snaffle Bit Futurity, an annual cowboying contest in Fort Worth that carries $1.1 million in payouts, wanted some government help: The group thought the contest and others it hosts might qualify … Read More
The Episcopal Health Foundation (EHF) is announcing a $17 million investment to help community-based clinics provide a wider range of health services and go beyond the doctor’s office to address underlying causes of poor health. EHF has awarded $17 million … Read More
Texas could feel a fiscal strain in the coming years due to growing Medicaid costs if economic growth slows and a recession sets in, according to a new report from S&P Global Ratings. The S&P “budget scorecard” examines the 2020-2021 … Read More
June 24, 2019 – 1:00pm Health and Human Services Commission, Robert D. Moreton Building, Room M-1001,100 W 49th StreetAustin, TX 78756 Webcasting Available This meeting will be webcast. To access the webcast, go to https://hhs.texas.gov/about-hhs/communications-events/live-archived-meetings the day and time of the meeting and select … Read More
HARLINGEN — Health insurance costs are going up again at City Hall. Earlier this week, city commissioners approved a $6.5 million employee health insurance contract that came with a $217,000 increase over the current $6.29 million policy. During a Wednesday … Read More
Texas finished last among the 50 states and the District of Columbia for health care access and affordability for its residents, according to a new study by the New York-based Commonwealth Fund. The analysis, titled the “2019 Scorecard on State … Read More
AUSTIN – Investigative work by the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s office helped the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) bring charges today against the director and two operators of a Houston-based medical clinic for their … Read More
Central Health-funded CommUnityCare Health Centers officials said they will start seeing patients on Monday inside a new mobile clinic parked in Colony Park and Creedmoor, communities in eastern Travis County region marked by high rates of uninsured residents, families living … Read More
