The HHS Office of Inspector General (OIG) is both “leveraging technology for enforcement and oversight” and policing the way it’s used by providers and health information technology companies, according to Acting Inspector General (IG) Joanne Chiedi. OIG has already been auditing and investigating suspected telemedicine fraud, its preparing to fine companies for information blocking and its anticipating the benefits and risks of artificial intelligence in health care.

“We are investing in people and technology so we have advanced technology to fight fraud, waste and abuse,” Chiedi said Sept. 26 at the Fraud and Compliance Forum in Baltimore sponsored by the American Health Lawyers Association. OIG has hired its first chief data officer, Caryl Brzymialkiewicz, who “has revolutionized the way OIG gathers data” to support audits and investigations, and “we are putting actionable data at our employees’ fingertips. The volume of data we are dealing with is exploding.” Chiedi noted, however, that “data alone doesn’t tell us if someone committed fraud. But data points us in the right direction.” She said OIG is “always exploring new ways to share data and provide education when appropriate.”