General Info:
The written policies may be on paper or in electronic form, but they must be readily available to all your employees ( and contractors or agents ). The policies may be incorporated into our employee handbook, if an employee handbook already exist, but the law does not require us to create one if none already exists. This policy will be posted on our internal website. Attached is a model policy to comply with the new law based on recent guidance by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Please contact Ms. Ana Benitez-Wiggins at ndadm@bellsouth.net or ( 305 ) 635-0366 with any questions. Community Mental Health Center, Inc Policy to Provide Education About False Claims Liability, Anti-Retaliation Protections, and Detecting and Responding to Fraud Purpose: To satisfy the requirements of Section 6032 of the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 by setting forth certain federal and state laws relating to liability for false claims and statements ; protections against reprisal or retaliation for those who report wrongdoing ; and New Horizons CMHC, Inc policies and procedures to detect and prevent fraud, waste and abuse. Scope: This policy applies to all directors, officers, administrators, managers, staff, employees, contractors and agents of New Horizons CMHC, Inc. The agency has long established as its policy that the agency will comply with all relevant federal and state law and regulations including, but not limited to, those laws and regulations related to billing and coding practices. No New Horizons staff has the authority to direct, participate in, approve, or tolerate any violation of any of the laws described in this Policy. Policy: It is the policy of New Horizons CMHC, Inc to obey all federal and state laws, to implement and enforce procedures to detect and prevent fraud, waste, and abuse with respect to payments to New Horizons CMHC, Inc from federal or state health care programs, and to provide protections for those who report wrongdoing. Distribution: This Policy shall be distributed to all current and new Board members, officers, administrators, managers, staff, employees, contractors and agents of New Horizons CMHC, Inc The agency shall make this information available in written or web based material in the following manner: ( 1 ) this Policy, and ( 2 ) any Employee Handbook published for employees of the agency or similar manual. Explanation of Laws: Set forth below are summaries of certain statutes that provide liability for false claims and statements. These summaries are not intended to identify all applicable laws but rather to outline some of the major statutory provisions as required by the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005. The False Claims Act authorizes the U.S. Attorney General to bring legal actions alleging violations of the statute. The statute also allows private citizens to file a lawsuit in the name of the United States for false or fraudulent claims submitted by individuals or companies that do business with, or are reimbursed by, the United States. Commonly known as a qui tam action, a lawsuit brought under the act by a private citizen begins with the filing of a civil complaint in federal court. As an incentive to bring these cases, the law provides that whistleblowers who file a qui tam action may receive a percentage of the money recouped as a reward. This reward may be reduced, however, if for example the court finds the whistleblower planned and initiated the violation. The act also provides that whistleblowers who prosecute clearly frivolous qui tam claims can be held liable to a defendant for its attorneys' fees and costs. Whistleblowers are given certain protections under the act from retaliation for bringing an action under the law, such as being discharged, demoted, or harassed.