Government watchdog warns of Medicare fraud after relaxing provider requirements

Healthcare DIVE December 20, 2022
Samantha Liss

A government watchdog agency is urging federal health regulators to speed up checks on providers and conduct background checks after raising concerns about the risk for fraud following the coronavirus pandemic.

The CMS relaxed provider enrollment requirements during the pandemic to ensure continuity for both providers and enrollees during the public health emergency. However, a report from the Government Accountability Office raised concerns about the fraud risk some of these providers may pose to the program.

The GAO found that about 222,000 providers were able to enroll between March 2020 and March 2022 through the relaxed requirements. Suppliers of durable medical equipment represented a small share of those who enrolled during this period but represented 83% of those who were...

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