Due to the exorbitant cost of federal healthcare program fraud (i.e. Medicare and Medicaid fraud), federal authorities are aggressively targeting all types of providers. Since even unintentional violations can lead to recoupments, civil fines, and other penalties, mental health professionals need to be absolutely certain that their billing and coding practices are compliant. This is true even if you rely on a third-party billing company—if your practice's program billings are non-compliant, the federal government is going to hold your practice responsible.