Question

Discuss your opinion of the Stark laws, what they are designed to do, the impact of the exceptions, and whether you think they are successful in preventing unethical behavior.

Answer 1

Ans) The stark laws were put into place in 1989 to defer physicians from referring patients to facilities that the physician had a financial interest in.

- “The 1989 study concluded that physicians who owned or invested in independent clinical laboratories referred Medicare patients for 45% more laboratory services than did physicians without financial interests”.

- Stark laws pertain to many areas of healthcare, such as rehab services, DME equipment, home health services and prescription drugs, just to name a few.There are several exceptions to the Stark Law.

- To name a few, they are In-Office Ancillary Services Exception, Fair Market Compensation Exception, Indirect Compensation Exception and Non-Monetary Exception. Regardless of these exceptions, the referring physician must always keep in mind that if any