JAMA : the journal of the American Medical Association
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Comparative Study
Capturing the patient's view of change as a clinical outcome measure.
Measurement of change in patients' health status is central to both clinical trials and clinical practice. Trials commonly use serial measurements by the patients at 2 points in time while clinicians use the patient's retrospective assessment of change made at 1 point in time. How well these measures correlate is not known. ⋯ The 2 methods for measuring health status change did not give concordant results. Including patient retrospective assessments in clinical trials might increase the comprehensiveness of information gained and its accord with clinical practice.
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In recent years, health care fraud and abuse have become major issues, in part because of the rising cost of health care, industry consolidation, the emergence of private "whistle-blowers," and a change in the concept of fraud to include an emerging concern about quality of care. The 3 types of conduct that are generally prohibited by health care fraud laws are false claims, kickbacks, and self-referrals. False claims are subject to several criminal, civil, and administrative prohibitions, notably the federal civil False Claims Act. ⋯ In addition, private whistle-blowers may, acting in the name of the United States, file suit against an entity under the False Claims Act. Enforcement of health care fraud and abuse laws has become increasingly commonplace and now affects many mainstream providers. This trend is likely to continue.