A person subject to civil money penalties specified in §402.1(c) may be subject, in addition, to an assessment. An assessment is a monetary payment in lieu of damages sustained by HHS or a State agency.

(a) The assessment may not be more than twice the amount claimed for each service that was a basis for the civil money penalty, except for the violations specified in paragraph (b) of this section that occur before January 1, 1997.

(b) For the violations specified in this paragraph occurring after January 1, 1997, the assessment may not be more than three times the amount claimed for each service that was the basis for a civil money penalty. The violations are the following:

(1) Knowingly and willfully billing, and on a repeated basis, for a clinical diagnostic laboratory test, other than on an assignment-related basis (§402.1(c)(1)).

(2) By any durable medical equipment supplier, knowingly and willfully charging for a covered service that is furnished on a rental basis after the rental payments may no longer be made (except for maintenance and servicing) as provided in section 1834(a)(7)(A) (§402.1(c)(4)).

(3) By any durable medical equipment supplier, knowingly and willfully failing, in violation of section 1834(a)(18)(A), to make a refund to Medicare beneficiaries for a covered service for which payment is precluded due to an unsolicited telephone contact from the supplier (§402.1(c)(5)).

(4) By any nonparticipating physician or supplier, knowingly and willfully charging a Medicare beneficiary more than the limiting charge, as specified in section 1834(b)(5)(B), for radiologist services (§402.1(c)(6)).

(5) By any nonparticipating physician or supplier, knowingly and willfully charging a Medicare beneficiary more than the limiting charge as specified in section 1834(c)(3), for mammography screening (§402.1(c)(7)).

(6) By any supplier of prosthetic devices, orthotics, and prosthetics, knowingly and willfully charging for a covered prosthetic device, orthotic, or prosthetic that is furnished on a rental basis after the rental payment may no longer be made (except for maintenance and servicing) (§401.2(c)(8)).

(7) By any supplier of durable medical equipment, including a supplier of prosthetic devices, prosthetics, orthotics, or supplies, knowingly and willfully failing to make refunds in a timely manner to Medicare beneficiaries for services billed other than on an assignment-related basis if—

(i) The supplier does not possess a Medicare supplier number;

(ii) The service is denied in advance; or

(iii) The service is determined not to be medically necessary or reasonable (§402.1(c)(10)).

(8) Knowingly and willfully billing or collecting for any services on other than an assignment-related basis for a person or entity specified in sections 1834(k)(6), 1834(l)(6), or 1842(b)(18)(B) (§402.1(c)(11), (c)(31), or (c)(32)).

(9) By any physician, knowingly and willfully presenting, or causing to be presented, a claim or bill for an assistant at cataract surgery performed on or after March 1, 1987 for which payment may not be made because of section 1862(a)(15) (§402.1(c)(12)).

(10) By any nonparticipating physician who does not accept payment on an assignment-related basis, knowingly and willfully failing to refund on a timely basis any amounts collected for services that are not reasonable or medically necessary or are of poor quality, in accordance with section 1842(l)(1)(A) (§402.1(c)(13)).

(11) By any nonparticipating physician, who does not accept payment for an elective surgical procedure on an assignment-related basis and whose charge is at least $500, knowingly and willfully failing to—

(i) Disclose the information required by section 1842(m)(1) concerning charges and coinsurance amounts; and

(ii) Refund on a timely basis any amount collected for the procedure in excess of the charges recognized and approved by the Medicare program (§402.1(c)(14)).

(12) By any physician, in repeated cases, knowingly and willfully billing one or more beneficiaries, for purchased diagnostic tests, any amount other than the payment amount specified in section 1842(n)(1)(A) or section 1842(n)(1)(B) (§402.1(c)(15)).

(13) By any nonparticipating physician, supplier, or other person that furnishes physicians' services and does not accept payment on an assignment-related basis—

(i) Knowingly and willfully billing or collecting in excess of the limiting charge (as defined in section 1843(g)(2)) on a repeated basis; or

(ii) Failing to make an adjustment or refund on a timely basis as required by section 1848(g)(1)(A) (iii) or (iv) (§402.1(c)(17)).

(14) Knowingly and willfully billing for State plan approved physicians' services on other than an assignment-related basis for a Medicare beneficiary who is also eligible for Medicaid (§402.1(c)(18)).

(15) By any supplier of durable medical equipment, including suppliers of prosthetic devices, prosthetics, orthotics, or supplies, knowingly and willfully failing to make refunds in a timely manner to Medicare beneficiaries for services billed on an assignment-related basis if—

(i) The supplier did not possess a Medicare supplier number;

(ii) The service is denied in advance; or

(iii) The service is determined not to be medically necessary or reasonable (§402.1(c)(23)).

[63 FR 68690, Dec. 14, 1998, as amended at 66 FR 49546, Sept. 28, 2001]