Fort Smith Healthcare Fraud Defense Attorneys

Federal authorities are targeting healthcare providers in Fort Smith, Arkansas. Audits and investigations can expose providers to substantial civil penalties—and they can even lead to criminal healthcare fraud charges in some cases. Our Fort Smith healthcare fraud defense lawyers can help you protect your career, your practice, and your reputation. If you are facing an audit or investigation, or if you are facing charges of fraud, contact us today.

Like many small cities in Arkansas, Fort Smith has become a focus point for federal healthcare authorities in recent years. Agencies including the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS OIG), Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), and Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) are all focusing on providers in the Fort Smith area. While recent cases suggest that they are prioritizing certain issues in particular—including Medicare billing fraud and fraudulent opioid prescriptions—providers targeted in audits and investigations can face a broad range of allegations.

If you are facing an HHS OIG, CMS, or DEA audit or investigation in Fort Smith, or if your practice is facing scrutiny from any other agency or independent auditor—you need to be very careful. These inquiries present significant risks, and they can lead to substantial liability. Engaging experienced defense counsel is the first step. At Oberheiden P.C., each one of our Fort Smith healthcare fraud defense lawyers brings extensive experience to the table. We can use our experience to help resolve the investigation as quickly and favorably as possible, and then we can help you implement a compliance program that mitigates your risk in the future.

Federal Defense Attorneys Handling All Civil Healthcare Fraud Matters in Fort Smith, AR

Each Fort Smith healthcare fraud defense attorney at Oberheiden P.C. has extensive experience representing physicians and other clients in civil audits, investigations, and enforcement proceedings. Our law firm’s attorneys are also experienced in handling federal fraud cases, providing comprehensive defense strategies for clients facing these serious allegations. Some examples of matters we regularly handle for clients in Arkansas (and other states) include:

Medicare and Medicaid Billing Audits

Our attorneys routinely represent clients during Medicare and Medicaid billing audits. CMS works with private “fee-for-service” auditors (including MACs, RACs, and UPICs) that are financially incentivized to uncover alleged overbillings under these programs. We deal with these auditors on behalf of our clients, working diligently to ensure that they do not exceed the scope of their authority, make unjustified recoupment demands, or impose other unjustified penalties.

Tricare and Department of Labor (DOL) Billing Audits

We also handle Tricare and DOL billing audits on behalf of medical practitioners in Fort Smith. If your practice bills Tricare through the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) or the DOL for medical services provided to federal employees, it is imperative to ensure that you have comprehensive documentation of compliance. Our attorneys can use the documentation you have on hand; and, if necessary, we can leverage other options for helping you avoid unnecessary liability while gaining the justice you deserve.

Anti-Kickback Statute and Stark Law Investigations

The Anti-Kickback Statute and Stark Law are federal laws that prohibit physicians and other healthcare professionals from using federally-reimbursed funds to compensate patient referrals. While these statutes’ prohibitions are broad, they are also subject to many safe harbors and exceptions. If you are facing allegations of soliciting, accepting, offering, or paying an unlawful referral fee (or providing any other form of “remuneration”), our lawyers can defend you.

Prescription Drug Fraud Investigations

The DEA is cracking down on healthcare practitioners in Fort Smith and the surrounding areas that are engaging in unlawful prescription practices. This includes writing unnecessary prescriptions, filling unnecessary prescriptions, and billing federal programs for unnecessary prescriptions—among a broad range of other illegal acts. Physicians, pharmacists, clinic owners, and others can all face significant penalties in prescription drug fraud investigations, and avoiding these penalties requires proactive, strategic, and effective legal representation.

Telehealth and Telemedicine Investigations

Telehealth and telemedicine have also become priority enforcement areas for the HHS OIG, CMS, and other federal authorities in recent years. While these authorities relaxed some of the restrictions on telehealth and telemedicine at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, providers are now facing intensive scrutiny once again. Improperly billing for telehealth or telemedicine services can lead to substantial penalties, and avoiding these penalties is often a matter of intervening in the government’s inquiry and demonstrating that authorities lack the evidence needed to justify charges.

Other Healthcare Audits and Investigations

In addition to the civil and criminal healthcare fraud matters listed above, we routinely represent providers in other circumstances as well. Some additional examples of high-risk allegations during audits and investigations for providers in Fort Smith include:

• Clinical testing practices and billing
• Durable medical equipment (DME) sales and billing
• Electronic prescription practices
• Healthcare marketing and referrals
• Patient billing and recordkeeping

In many cases, the focus of an audit or investigation will not be clear from the outset. In these situations, identifying the allegations at issue is the first step toward executing a strategic defense. At Oberheiden P.C., our Fort Smith healthcare fraud defense attorneys rely on their combined experience on both sides of these audits and investigations to assess our clients’ risks, identify available defenses, and guide their audits and investigations to positive outcomes.

Put our highly experienced team on your side

Dr. Nick Oberheiden

Founder

Attorney-at-Law

Lynette S. Byrd

Former DOJ Trial Attorney

Partner

Brian J. Kuester

Former U.S. Attorney

Hon. Kevin McCarthy

55th Speaker, U.S. House of Representatives (ret.)

Government Consultant

Mike Pompeo

Of Counsel

Former U.S. Secretary of State

John W. Sellers

Former Senior DOJ Trial Attorney

Linda Julin McNamara

Federal Appeals Attorney

Nicholas B. Johnson

Former Prosecutor

Roger Bach

Former Special Agent (DOJ)

Chris J. Quick

Former Special Agent (FBI & IRS-CI)

Michael S. Koslow

Former Supervisory Special Agent (DOD-OIG)

Ray Yuen

Former Supervisory Special Agent (FBI)

Defending Against Allegations of Criminal Healthcare Fraud in Fort Smith

Along with representing Fort Smith healthcare professionals in civil audits, investigations, and enforcement matters, we also provide representation for criminal healthcare fraud matters. In criminal cases, providers can face federal prison time in addition to financial penalties (and likely disciplinary action). As a result, a strategic and forceful defense is paramount, and targeted providers need to work closely with their defense counsel to protect themselves with all resources available, especially when facing serious criminal charges.

If you need a Fort Smith, Arkansas healthcare fraud defense lawyer for a criminal investigation, grand jury proceeding, or trial, we strongly encourage you to contact us right away. We handle all types of criminal healthcare fraud matters in Arkansas, including (but not limited to):

• Intentional billing fraud (Medicare, Medicaid, Tricare, and DOL)
• Intentional Anti-Kickback Statute violations
• Prescription drug offenses under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA)
• Criminal prosecutions under the False Claims Act
• Conspiracy to commit fraud and other related crimes

Depending on the specific allegations at issue, criminal charges can carry penalties ranging from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines and years to decades behind bars. These are extremely serious cases, and healthcare providers need to treat them accordingly. At Oberheiden P.C., we have the experience required to handle high-stakes criminal healthcare fraud cases effectively, and our track record in these cases speaks for itself.

FAQs: Hiring a Fort Smith Healthcare Fraud Defense Attorney

Speak with a Fort Smith Healthcare Fraud Defense Attorney at Oberheiden P.C.

Do you need a healthcare fraud defense attorney in Fort Smith, Arkansas? If so, you can contact us 24/7 to arrange a complimentary initial consultation. To speak with a senior attorney at Oberheiden P.C. as soon as possible, please call 888-680-1745 or contact us confidentially online now.