Super hero movies are all the rage these days. With Aquaman have recently made a big splash, Captain Marvel hitting theaters this week and a new instalment of Avengers headed to big screens next month, there is a huge level of excitement that is only growing among comic book fans and movie-goers alike. If only our world-famous super heroes could combat such evil doers as perpetrators of health care fraud.
Well, believe it or not, such a wish has actually come true! As recently reported by Jake Flatley of West Virginia MetroNews, a crime-fighting team has been formed, specifically to take on health care fraud and the nation’s ongoing opioid crisis.
The team is called ARREST.
Announced last month by U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of West Virginia, Mike Stuart, the group’s focus will be on health care abuse, recovery and response. He made the announcement at a press conference in Charleston.
“This is an innovative approach linking civil and criminal efforts and enforcement efforts together with federal and state partners for a comprehensive attack on the opioid epidemic and health care fraud,” Stuart is quoted as saying in Flatley’s report. He goes on to point out just how damaging health care fraud is to the United States.
Medicaid fraud is estimated at more than $150 billion annually.
The Southern District of West Virginia, Stuart admits, counts for millions of dollars each year. The high numbers and accounts of fraud inspired the development of ARREST: a team specially designed to investigate all health care related cases in the district.
“If folks had any idea of the amount of Medicaid fraud that we prosecute on an annual basis right in this district right here, you’d understand the importance of this,” Stuart announced at the presser, “This is a state heavily reliant on government support. I suspect the number is quite high, hundreds of millions of dollars.”
ARREST is made up of a number of units.
As Flatley explains, they include “the Opioid Fraud and Abuse Detection Unit, Affirmative Civil Enforcement Unit, Appalachian Regional Prescription Opioid Task Force, Medicare and Medicaid Fraud, and Asset Forfeiture efforts related to all healthcare matters.”
The team, Stuart contends, is a revolutionary approach to dealing with health care fraud-related matters. Highlighting the widespread opioid epidemic and specifying the overprescribing of pills as a huge problem to attack, Stuart intends to have ARREST aggressively pursue perpetrators of health care fraud and abuse both civilly and criminally. He also pointed out that the team could always use the public’s help.
“If we rely only on law enforcement to solve all the problems of society, we will never get there,” Stuart is quoted as saying at the press conference, “We have to work together. I know we are in this with the public, with our communities, with our faith-based community. We have to make sure we are all working together on the same team.”
Are you an attorney currently trying a health care fraud case?
At Allegiant Experts, we remain committed to battling the opioid crisis by providing clinical expertise to attorneys trying such health care fraud cases. For more information about how we may be able to help your case, please don’t hesitate to call us at 407-217-5831 or email us at info@allegiantexperts.com.