The Primer on Whistleblowing in Healthcare, co-authored by Atlanta attorney Jay Brownstein, is an excellent resource regarding healthcare fraud. Healthcare fraud, including false and deceptive billing practices, costs taxpayers upwards of $80 billion each year. Healthcare fraud comes in many shapes and varieties, including fraudulent billing, kickback schemes, and other illegal practices. With Medicare and Medicaid paying the majority of these expenses, taxpayers ultimately pay the bill for healthcare fraud.
In their article, Jay Brownstein and Kevin Little educate the public on what whistleblowing is, how it relates to the area of healthcare fraud, and what to do should healthcare fraud be suspected. They point out that healthcare providers and employees need to be aware of their rights, as there are many state and federal laws in place to protect them in whistleblowing instances. Additionally, an outline of what to look for in billing fraud, illegal referral fees or kickback schemes, and drug manufacturer or medical device fraud is included. The article also identifies steps to take to help protect oneself before reporting fraud or wrongdoing in the healthcare industry.
Each year, many courageous private citizens bring qui taim, or whistleblower lawsuits, to help the government recover billions of dollars in fraudulent healthcare claims. The Primer on Whistleblowing in Healthcare is a quick, informative read for those interested in the topic.
