Compliance News Roundup: How Trump Admin And Jeff Sessions Will Change Compliance

1. Kentucky doctor sentenced in Medicaid fraud case: Big fraud in Kentucky. “A Kentucky doctor convicted of Medicaid fraud has been sentenced to five years in prison and ordered to pay more than $10,000 in restitution. Authorities say 58-year-old Dr. Ezekiel O. Akande of Somerset was sentenced late last week by Pulaski Circuit Court Judge David A. Tapp.” Ladies and gentlemen, another reason why compliance matter. Read more here: http://www.bgdailynews.com/news/state/kentucky-doctor-sentenced-in-medicaid-fraud-case/article_c1b4ef3a-c536-540c-8e00-541f1351f7f1.html

2. Lifespan notifies 20k patients of privacy breach from stolen laptop - In terms of privacy and security, this is where nightmares come from. “Providence, R.I.- based Lifespan notified patients on April 21 about a potential breach of personal information, including names, medical record numbers, demographic information and medication prescriptions. The privacy breach occurred when a Lifespan employee's car was broken into on Feb. 25. Several items were stolen, including a MacBook laptop the employee used for work purposes. The employee immediately contacted law enforcement and reported the theft to Lifespan, which launched an investigation and changed the employee's Lifespan system credentials.” Read more here: http://www.beckershospitalreview.com/healthcare-information-technology/lifespan-notifies-20k-patients-of-privacy-breach-from-stolen-laptop.html

3. How Will The Trump Administration and Jeff Sessions Change Compliance? You folks might remember that in early February of this year, I wrote an eBrief predicting the future of compliance under the new Presidential administration. My guess was that regulatory burdens would decrease. In the eBrief, I wrote that the core of compliance and enforcement would probably stay the same, especially from a Department of Justice perspective.  To support my view, I shared a video clip of then Senator Jeff Sessions commenting on his support of the False Claims Act during his confirmation hearing. Since some time has passed since we published that eBrief, I feel that I have an even better understanding on the direction of compliance under president Trump. Check out the full blog post to find out what I think will happen next: http://www.healthicity.com/blog/deeper-than-the-headlines-how-trump-admin-jeff-sessions-will-change-compliance