Rejection of medical bill screening subject to suspension

Hospitals and clinics refusing to submit to the screening of medical bills they issue to patients will face one-year suspensions of their right to operate. The government resolved to impose the stiff penalty to clamp down on some practitioners who are suspected of falsifying or padding prescriptions and bills to draw more money from the medical insurance system. If suspended medical institutions resume business later, they would be fined five times the amount they requested under false pretenses.

The Ministry of Health and Welfare on Wednesday decided to strengthen the health insurance law to provide for stiffer punishments of medical institutions that make inappropriate and excessive requests for payment. These irregularities are believed to have caused a serious drain on the insurance reserve funds. The ministry will draft and propose amendments to the enforcement decree of the law to enable such tightened punitive actions against violators.

The new provisions would cover refusal to provide data for payment of medical bills and computerized records or to answer questions and accept monitoring to verify payment requests. They would also extend the period of possible suspension to 365 days from the current 90 days.