Targeting tax credit fraud

New scheme to abolish fraud and errors in dental exemption claims to be piloted in NHS Forth Valley

29 September, 2015 / editorial
 

A new scheme that aims to stamp out fraud and errors in dental exemption claims, saving the health service more than £3 million per year has been launched.

The NHS Scotland Counter Fraud Services (CFS) pilot scheme will focus on preventing fraudulent and erroneous patient claims for exemption from dental treatment costs under the NHS Tax Credit category. This area of exemption was highlighted by CFS after more than £3.25 million was lost nationally to fraud or error in 2014 alone. This figure represents 28 per cent of the overall payments made by NHS Scotland under this exemption category last year.

The initiative will be piloted in NHS Forth Valley and will see members of the CFS team visit dental practices to reinforce the important role that practice staff can play in reducing claims made wrongly by patients. The CFS training support events will focus on prevention rather than monitoring and enforcement.

Fraser Paterson, national counter fraud prevention manager at CFS, said: “This initiative is all about deterrence. When you think that every fourth person who claims exemption under the NHS Tax Credit category does so either mistakenly or fraudulently, you can understand why our pilot work with NHS Forth Valley dental community is so important.

“We believe that a well supported, planned and co-ordinated venture of this type can reduce the amount wrongly paid to patients for this type of dental claim exemption.”

Tags: crime / Fraud / NHS Forth Valley / tax

Categories: Magazine

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