OIG Outlines Issues With Two Medicare Provider Databases
Health care provider information in two Medicare databases is inaccurate and incomplete, according to a report by HHS' Office of the Inspector General. The databases -- used to determine provider identities to help prevent fraud -- are the National Plan and Provider Enumeration System, or NPPES, and Provider Enrollment, Chain and Ownership System, or PECOS. OIG also found that information shared between the databases was inconsistent for 97% of records, with the most inaccuracies appearing in providers' addresses.
- "Inaccurate Medicare Databases Ripe for Fraud" (Bowman, FierceHealthIT, 5/30).
- "HHS Report: Major Medicare Databases Are a Mess" (Goedert, Health Data Management, 5/29).