The government's new fraud data bank began disclosing adverse actions taken against physicians, other health care practitioners and suppliers on March 6. The Healthcare Integrity and Protection Data Bank, which was mandated by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, reports licensing actions, exclusions from the Medicare and Medicaid programs, criminal convictions and civil judgments related to health care. The data are supplied by state and federal law enforcement organizations, licensing and certifying boards and private health plans. Those agencies and entities are required to report all final adverse actions taken since Aug. 21, 1996. The NPDB contains reports of medical malpractice and adverse licensing and professional society actions taken against some 146,000 physicians and dentists.
Federal agencies can request the information for free.
Physicians who wish to dispute information contained in the data bank must contact the agency or insurer that reported the violation. If the reporting entity chooses not to change the report, the physician, practitioner or supplier can add a statement to the report or request that the Secretary of the Dept. of Health and Human Services review the report. Back to top.