When we posted a news story yesterday reporting that "anti-fraud associations representing both the property-casualty and health insurance sectors will pool their resources to increase detection and prevention of health care fraud," the first question that came to mind was, what took them so long?
(To read the complete news story, click here.)
I suppose I should not be surprised that the p-c and health-disability insurance sectors were off on their own all this time in trying to prevent fraud. While the public perceives the "insurance industry" as two sides of the same coin, the p-c and life-health groups have long operated as if they were two different currencies altogether.
Working together as part of a new "Consortium to Combat Medical Fraud" makes a lot of sense, since they have a common enemy–soaring medical expenses, particularly for prescription drugs, with an unhealthy chunk generated by inflated and fake claims.
With loss costs for auto and workers' comp insurers being forced up by skyrocketing medical bills, it's a wonder no one thought of this earlier.
Honest buyers should benefit. Indeed, most policyholders would be mortified if they realized how their premiums rise to compensate for fraud, thus subsidizing the criminals in their midst.
According to the story by our own Phil Gusman, the Coalition Against Insurance Fraud, the National Insurance Crime Bureau and the National Health Care Anti-Fraud Association will join forces to "share information, organize joint education initiatives and work collaboratively with law enforcement to fight fraud that often crosses over between the p-c and health insurance sectors."
The groups cited a common interest in rooting out "unscrupulous medical providers, who "routinely engage in schemes such as fraudulently billing for services that are not provided, and defraud all segments of the insurance industry that provide compensation for illness and injury."
The associations vowed to work together to cross-match claims and data in an effort to uncover fraud schemes that cross over from one insurance sector to another.
Dennis Jay, executive director of the Coalition Against Insurance Fraud, pointed out the timeliness of this collaborative effort, given that fraud rings tend to be more active when the economy is in the tank.
Never before have different parts of the insurance system cross-pollinated to seek new ways to prevent fraud," declared Louis Saccoccio, executive director of NHCAA. "This approach will break down barriers and increase awareness across insurance lines so that we share information and coordinate our approach more systematically.
All I have to say is, it's about time!
What do you folks think? Will this joint effort pay quick dividends?
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