January 2019
Published in  Arkansas Medical News   (January/February)

In October 2018, a new Federal anti-kickback law (the Eliminating Kickbacks in Recovery Act of 2018, or EKRA” became effective. 

This new law could have significant (even unintended) impact for providers in the substance abuse and/or clinical laboratory markets. Like the existing Federal Anti-Kickback Statute (Federal AKS), EKRA is a  criminal  statute, which provides for criminal fines and imprisonment. EKRA is a separate and distinct statute from the Federal AKS.

EKRA was enacted as one part of the Federal SUPPORT Act, which is an aggregation of numerous, separate bills / acts, including EKRA. The primary purpose of the SUPPORT Act is to legislatively attack the opioid epidemic which is certainly a nationwide crisis. 

However, with regard to EKRA specifically, the new prohibitions pertain to services that may have nothing to do with the opioid crisis. In other words, EKRA applies to laboratory services, regardless of whether the laboratory services relate to matters of substance abuse.
Health Law Attorneys
The information was written by the attorneys in the  H ealth Law Practice Group at Friday, Eldredge & Clark, LLP. This is not a substitute for legal advice and should be considered for general guidance only. For more information or if you have further questions, please contact one of our   Health Law Attorneys.
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