CPMA Exam Questions And Answers
CMS Examples of Abuse Misusing codes on a claim, charging excessively for services or
supplies, billing for services that were not medically necessary, failure to maintain adequate
medical or financial records, improper billing practices, billing Medicare patients a higher fee
schedule than non-Medicare patients
False Claims Act Any person is liable if they knowingly present or cause to be presented a
false or fraudulent claim for payment or approval; knowingly makes, uses, or causes to be made
or used, a false record or material to a false or fraudulent claims
Current False Claims Act penalties $5,500-$11,000 per claim
When does the False Claims Act allow for reduced penalties? If the person committing the
violation self-discloses and provides all known info within 30 days, fully cooperates with the
investigation, and there is no criminal prosecution, civil action, or administrative action
regarding the violation
Qui Tam or "Whistleblower" provision If an individual (known as a "relator") knows of a
violation of the False Claims Act, he or she may bring a civil action on behalf of him or herself
, CPMA Exam Questions And Answers
and on behalf of the U.S. government; the relator may be awarded 15-25% of the dollar amount
recovered
Stark or Physician Self-Referral Law Bans physicians from referring patients for certain
services to entities in which the physician or an immediate family member has a direct or indirect
financial relationship; bans the entity from billing Medicare or Medicaid for the services
provided as a result of the self-referral
Anti-Kickback Law Similar to the Stark Law but imposes more severe penalties; states
that whoever knowingly or willfully solicits or receives any remuneration in return for referring
an individual to a person for the furnishing or arranging of any item or service for which
payment may be made in whole or in part under a federal healthcare program or in return for
purchasing, leasing, ordering, or arranging for or recommending purchasing, leasing, or ordering
any good, facility, service, or item for which payment may be made in whole or in part under a
federal healthcare program is guilty of a felony
Penalty for violating the Anti-Kickback Law Up to $25,000 fine and/or imprisonment of
up to 5 years
, CPMA Exam Questions And Answers
Stark Law vs. Anti-Kickback Law Anti-Kickback applies to anyone, not just physicians;
the Anti-Kickback Law requires proof of intention and states that the person must "knowingly
and willfully" violate the law.
Exclusion Statute Under the Exclusion Statute, a physician who is convicted of a criminal
offense—such as Medicare fraud (both misdemeanor and felony convictions), patient abuse and
neglect, or illegal distribution of controlled substances—can be banned from participating in
Medicare by the OIG. Physicians who are excluded may not directly or indirectly bill the federal
government for the services they provide to Medicare patients.
List of Excluded Individuals/Entities (LEIE) Produced and updated by the OIG; provides
information regarding individuals and entities currently excluded from participation in Medicare,
Medicaid, and all other federal healthcare programs; sorts excluded individuals or entities by the
legal basis for the exclusion, the types of individuals and entities that have been excluded, and
the states where the excluded individual resided at the time they were excluded or the state in
which the entity was doing business
Civil Monetary Penalties Law The Social Security Act authorizes the HHS to seek civil
monetary penalties and exclusion for certain behaviors. These penalties are enforced by the OIG
through the Civil Monetary Penalties (CMP) Law. The severity of penalties and monetary
amounts charged depend on the type of conduct engaged in by the physician. A physician can
, CPMA Exam Questions And Answers
incur a CMP in the following ways: Presenting or causing claims to be presented to a federal
healthcare program that the person knows or should know is for an item or service that was not
provided as claimed or is false or fraudulent.Violating the Anti-Kickback Statute by knowingly
and willfully (1) offering or paying remuneration to induce the referral of federal healthcare
program business, or (2) soliciting or receiving remuneration in return for the referral of federal
healthcare program business. Knowingly presenting or causing claims to be presented for a
service for which payment may not be made under the Stark law
Amount of civil monetary penalties Range from $10,000-$50,000 per violation and an
assessment of up to 3 times the amount of the over-payments
Reverse False Claims section of the False Claims Act Final section that provides liability
where a person acts improperly to avoid paying money owed to the government
Examples of fraud/misconduct subject to the False Claims Act Falsifying a medical chart
notation; submitting claims for services not performed, not requested, or unnecessary; submitting
claims for expired drugs; upcoding and/or unbundling services; submitting claims for physician
services performed by a non-physician provider without regard to Incident-to guidelines
Exceptions to the Stark Law General exceptions to both ownership and compensation
arrangement prohibitions (in-office ancillary services); general exceptions related only to
CMS Examples of Abuse Misusing codes on a claim, charging excessively for services or
supplies, billing for services that were not medically necessary, failure to maintain adequate
medical or financial records, improper billing practices, billing Medicare patients a higher fee
schedule than non-Medicare patients
False Claims Act Any person is liable if they knowingly present or cause to be presented a
false or fraudulent claim for payment or approval; knowingly makes, uses, or causes to be made
or used, a false record or material to a false or fraudulent claims
Current False Claims Act penalties $5,500-$11,000 per claim
When does the False Claims Act allow for reduced penalties? If the person committing the
violation self-discloses and provides all known info within 30 days, fully cooperates with the
investigation, and there is no criminal prosecution, civil action, or administrative action
regarding the violation
Qui Tam or "Whistleblower" provision If an individual (known as a "relator") knows of a
violation of the False Claims Act, he or she may bring a civil action on behalf of him or herself
, CPMA Exam Questions And Answers
and on behalf of the U.S. government; the relator may be awarded 15-25% of the dollar amount
recovered
Stark or Physician Self-Referral Law Bans physicians from referring patients for certain
services to entities in which the physician or an immediate family member has a direct or indirect
financial relationship; bans the entity from billing Medicare or Medicaid for the services
provided as a result of the self-referral
Anti-Kickback Law Similar to the Stark Law but imposes more severe penalties; states
that whoever knowingly or willfully solicits or receives any remuneration in return for referring
an individual to a person for the furnishing or arranging of any item or service for which
payment may be made in whole or in part under a federal healthcare program or in return for
purchasing, leasing, ordering, or arranging for or recommending purchasing, leasing, or ordering
any good, facility, service, or item for which payment may be made in whole or in part under a
federal healthcare program is guilty of a felony
Penalty for violating the Anti-Kickback Law Up to $25,000 fine and/or imprisonment of
up to 5 years
, CPMA Exam Questions And Answers
Stark Law vs. Anti-Kickback Law Anti-Kickback applies to anyone, not just physicians;
the Anti-Kickback Law requires proof of intention and states that the person must "knowingly
and willfully" violate the law.
Exclusion Statute Under the Exclusion Statute, a physician who is convicted of a criminal
offense—such as Medicare fraud (both misdemeanor and felony convictions), patient abuse and
neglect, or illegal distribution of controlled substances—can be banned from participating in
Medicare by the OIG. Physicians who are excluded may not directly or indirectly bill the federal
government for the services they provide to Medicare patients.
List of Excluded Individuals/Entities (LEIE) Produced and updated by the OIG; provides
information regarding individuals and entities currently excluded from participation in Medicare,
Medicaid, and all other federal healthcare programs; sorts excluded individuals or entities by the
legal basis for the exclusion, the types of individuals and entities that have been excluded, and
the states where the excluded individual resided at the time they were excluded or the state in
which the entity was doing business
Civil Monetary Penalties Law The Social Security Act authorizes the HHS to seek civil
monetary penalties and exclusion for certain behaviors. These penalties are enforced by the OIG
through the Civil Monetary Penalties (CMP) Law. The severity of penalties and monetary
amounts charged depend on the type of conduct engaged in by the physician. A physician can
, CPMA Exam Questions And Answers
incur a CMP in the following ways: Presenting or causing claims to be presented to a federal
healthcare program that the person knows or should know is for an item or service that was not
provided as claimed or is false or fraudulent.Violating the Anti-Kickback Statute by knowingly
and willfully (1) offering or paying remuneration to induce the referral of federal healthcare
program business, or (2) soliciting or receiving remuneration in return for the referral of federal
healthcare program business. Knowingly presenting or causing claims to be presented for a
service for which payment may not be made under the Stark law
Amount of civil monetary penalties Range from $10,000-$50,000 per violation and an
assessment of up to 3 times the amount of the over-payments
Reverse False Claims section of the False Claims Act Final section that provides liability
where a person acts improperly to avoid paying money owed to the government
Examples of fraud/misconduct subject to the False Claims Act Falsifying a medical chart
notation; submitting claims for services not performed, not requested, or unnecessary; submitting
claims for expired drugs; upcoding and/or unbundling services; submitting claims for physician
services performed by a non-physician provider without regard to Incident-to guidelines
Exceptions to the Stark Law General exceptions to both ownership and compensation
arrangement prohibitions (in-office ancillary services); general exceptions related only to
