Under a program at New Jersey’s Office of the State Comptroller, health care providers can notify OSC of inappropriate New Jersey Medicaid payments and return the funds. The OSC may forgive or reduce interest payments and/or extend a repayment schedule.

According to the OSC, it identified improperly spent Medicaid dollars in excess of $73 million during the 2019-2023 fiscal years. Of the total, 11%, or $7.9 million, was due to self-disclosure by 70 providers.

“This is one of the valuable tools that OSC uses to mitigate fraud, waste, and abuse in New Jersey’s Medicaid program,” said Josh Lichtblau, director of OSC’s Medicaid Fraud Division. “We strongly encourage providers receiving Medicaid funds to investigate, audit, and report any overpayments, as the law requires.”

The Affordable Care Act of 2010 requires Medicaid providers to be proactive about identifying errors and overpayments, and to report and repay overpayments within 60 calendar days of identification. Failure to do so may result in the imposition of fines and penalties.