CMS has recently committed significant resources to advance the use of electronic health records (“EHR”) systems. One of the biggest initiatives is the “meaningful use” program, through which CMS offers incentive payments to healthcare providers who demonstrate and attest to using EHR systems that have certain qualities and satisfy specific objectives.
Unsurprisingly, the increased adoption of EHR systems and the government’s subsidization thereof has attracted attention from relators filing qui tam suits under the False Claims Act. These suits assert a range of theories, from alleged submission of claims for unearned meaningful use payments to EHR-facilitated “upcoding,” and they have been aimed at both EHR vendors and healthcare providers.
This article discusses this enforcement trend further.
