TX Penal Code § 35A.01 (2021)
2021 Texas Statutes|Penal Code|Title 7 - Offenses Against Property|Chapter 35A - Health Care Fraud|Section 35A.01. Definitions

Sec. 35A.01.  DEFINITIONS.  In this chapter:(1)  "Claim" means a written or electronically submitted request or demand that:(A)  is submitted by a provider or the provider's agent and identifies a service or product provided or purported to have been provided to a health care recipient as reimbursable under a health care program, without regard to whether the money that is requested or demanded is paid; or(B)  states the income earned or expense incurred by a provider in providing a service or product and is used to determine a rate of payment under a health care program.(2)  "Fiscal agent" means:(A)  a person who, through a contractual relationship with a state agency or the federal government, receives, processes, and pays a claim under a health care program; or(B)  the designated agent of a person described by Paragraph (A).(3)  "Health care practitioner" means a dentist, podiatrist, psychologist, physical therapist, chiropractor, registered nurse, or other provider licensed to provide health care services in this state.(4)  "Health care program" means a program funded by this state, the federal government, or both and designed to provide health care services to health care recipients, including a program that is administered in whole or in part through a managed care delivery model.(5)  "Health care recipient" means an individual to whom a service or product is provided or purported to have been provided and with respect to whom a person claims or receives a payment for that service or product from a health care program or fiscal agent, without regard to whether the individual was eligible for benefits under the health care program.(6)  "Managed care organization" means a person who is authorized or otherwise permitted by law to arrange for or provide a managed care plan.(7)  "Physician" means a physician licensed to practice medicine in this state.(8)  "Provider" means a person who participates in or has applied to participate in a health care program as a supplier of a service or product and includes:(A)  a management company that manages, operates, or controls another provider;(B)  a person, including a medical vendor, who provides a service or product to another provider or the other provider's agent;(C)  an employee of the person who participates in or has applied to participate in the program;(D)  a managed care organization; and(E)  a manufacturer or distributor of a product for which a health care program provides reimbursement.(9)  "Service" includes care or treatment of a health care recipient.(10)  "High managerial agent" means a director, officer, or employee who is authorized to act on behalf of a provider and has duties of such responsibility that the conduct of the director, officer, or employee reasonably may be assumed to represent the policy or intent of the provider.|Added by Acts 2005, 79th Leg., Ch. 806 (S.B. 563), Sec. 16, eff. September 1, 2005.Amended by: Acts 2011, 82nd Leg., R.S., Ch. 620 (S.B. 688), Sec. 8, eff. September 1, 2011.Acts 2019, 86th Leg., R.S., Ch. 381 (H.B. 2894), Sec. 6, eff. September 1, 2019.|