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Date: June 12, 1995
For Release: Immediately
Contact: Judy Holtz (202) 619-0893
Inspector General Announces Procedures
for
Voluntary Disclosure Program
HHS Inspector General June Gibbs Brown today issued procedures for administering the
voluntary disclosure program. The procedures outline:
- the eligibility and criteria for admission;
- application and acceptance into the VDP program;
- the company's internal investigation and Government's verification; and
- OIG administrative remedies and the company's integrity compliance program.
The voluntary disclosure program (VDP) was initiated on a pilot basis as part of "Operation
Restore Trust," a major anti-fraud targeted project sponsored by the Department of Health and
Human Services. The purpose of the voluntary disclosure program is to allow increased
participation by providers in detecting and preventing Medicare and Medicaid fraud and abuse.
The pilot project encourages health care corporate providers in the home health, nursing home,
and durable medical equipment (DME) industries to come forward and disclose potential
problems that the providers themselves have discovered within their entities. As a pilot project,
the VDP is available only in five states: New York, Florida, Illinois, Texas and California.
Through voluntary disclosure, eligible entities may be able to negotiate monetary settlements to
the Medicare and Medicaid programs based upon the matter disclosed; and to reduce or avoid
criminal prosecution and OIG exclusion. To be considered for admission into the VDP pilot
project, a "volunteer" must:
- Be a corporate entity, as opposed to an individual;
- Be engaged in the provision of Medicare DME or other items or services in the home
health and long-term care settings; and
- Have matters to disclose that affect beneficiaries in New York, Florida, Illinois, Texas or
California.
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