Understanding the referral services safe harbor.

In today's competitive healthcare environment, healthcare facilities and individual providers must form new relationships to safeguard their market positions and compete efficiently. But while such relationships are necessary and serve legitimate goals, those entering into such arrangements must be concerned that in so doing they do not run afoul of the Medicare and Medicaid fraud and abuse statute. This article examines the potential dangers of remuneration for referrals, and explains how one of the many so-called "safe harbor" provisions of the fraud and abuse statute applies to this practice.