How to gather healthcare documentation for whistleblowing Medicare or insurance fraud?
Remember healthcare whistleblower's tread a fine line between making copies of trade secrets and healthcare HIPAA violations. However no healthcare worker can be prohibited from reporting Medicare or False Claims Act violations, that very act of prohibiting an employee is an illegal activity by the employer.
First, you must understand the types of violations that are occurring in your healthcare organization. The better you understand the violations, the better you will be at gathering the documents and identifying the individuals that participated in those violations, and the methods by which they communicated. Once you have gathered this information, make sure you do not share it with colleagues, competitors, or others in the industry. However you may want to have your attorney review the documentation with you - do not share it with anyone else.
Hence you may want to collect:
- Pertinent Healthcare Documents: key healthcare contracts, relevant studies, operational healthcare reports, PowerPoint presentations, and executive reports, even sample patient records.
- Pertinent Communication: emails, letters, text messages, voicemails, or copies that were sent from one party to another that you happen to be privy to.
- Your Corporate Position Opposing the Violation: a record of communication that shows that you did not participate in the alleged violations, and moreover you objected to allowing the violation to occur.
In the event you get fired, these documents will also be your life raft to having a viable claim against the company.
Remember you cannot win an Award unless you file a Lawsuit.