title: Advisory opinions help clarify antifraud and abuse laws.
abstract: In 1997, the Office of the Inspector General published new procedures that allow requesters to obtain an advisory opinion as to whether a particular arrangement complies with the Federal anti-kickback statute. This process gives healthcare organizations a valuable new means by which to create individualized "safe harbors" for specific business arrangements. The advisory opinion process also may be integrated into a healthcare organization's corporate compliance program to help maintain the program's effectiveness.
authors.affiliation: Diepenbrock, Wulff, Plant and Hannegan, LLP, Sacramento, CA, USA.
authors.forename: F P
authors.initials: FP
authors.lastname: Fedor
mesh_terms: D005607:Fraud / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D019983:Guideline Adherence; D006298:Health Services Administration / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D016365:Liability, Legal; D008484:Medicaid / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D006278:Medicare / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D014481:United States