FWA
Abbreviation with 3 meanings
| Stands for | Federalwide Assurance |
|---|---|
| Meanings | 3 |
| Categories | Medical, Technology & Computing |
FWA has three meanings. The most common are Federalwide Assurance (medical research) and Fraud, waste and abuse (health insurance); it can also stand for Fixed wireless access.
Meanings of FWA at a glance
| # | FWA stands for | Context |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Federalwide Assurance | Medical › Medical Research |
| 2 | Fraud, waste and abuse | Medical › Health Insurance |
| 3 | Fixed wireless access | Technology & Computing › Telecom |
1. Federalwide Assurance
Medical · Medical Research Abbreviations
Written commitment that a US or foreign institution files with the Office for Human Research Protections, pledging to follow federal regulations for protecting human research subjects. Any institution engaged in HHS-funded human subjects research must hold an approved FWA.
Example: The partner clinic lacks an FWA, so it cannot be engaged in the NIH-funded study.
Each assurance designates the IRBs the institution relies on and must be renewed every five years. Assurance numbers consist of "FWA" followed by eight digits. In insurance compliance FWA means fraud, waste and abuse.
2. Fraud, waste and abuse
Medical · Health Insurance Abbreviations
Umbrella term used by Medicare, Medicaid and health plans for improper billing and spending, from intentional fraud such as billing for services never provided, to waste through overuse, to abuse through practices inconsistent with sound business or medical standards. Plans and contractors must run FWA compliance programs.
Example: Annual FWA training is required for everyone working on our Medicare Advantage contract.
Key federal laws include the False Claims Act, the Anti-Kickback Statute and the Stark Law on physician self-referral. Whistleblowers can share in False Claims Act recoveries. In research administration FWA means Federalwide Assurance.
3. Fixed wireless access
Technology & Computing · Telecom Abbreviations
Home or business broadband delivered over radio to a fixed receiver instead of cables, most often using 4G or 5G cellular networks or dedicated point-to-point links. It is a fast-growing alternative to cable and DSL.
Example: We dropped cable for FWA, and the 5G receiver by the window gets about 300 Mbit/s.
In the United States, T-Mobile Home Internet and Verizon 5G Home Internet signed up millions of customers in the early 2020s, making FWA one of the fastest-growing broadband types. Performance depends on signal strength and network load, since the capacity is shared with mobile users. Rural wireless internet service providers have long used dedicated FWA networks.
Related abbreviations
More medical research abbreviations
- EMA – European Medicines Agency
- EUA – Emergency use authorization
- FAERS – FDA Adverse Event Reporting System
- FIH – First-in-human
- GCP – Good Clinical Practice
- GLP – Good Laboratory Practice
- GRADE – Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation
- HR – Hazard ratio
See all 94 medical research abbreviations →
More health insurance abbreviations
- FEHB – Federal Employees Health Benefits (Program)
- FFS – Fee-for-service
- FPL – Federal poverty level
- FSA – Flexible spending account
- GFE – Good faith estimate
- HCC – Hierarchical condition category
- HCPCS – Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System
- HDHP – High-deductible health plan
See all 107 health insurance abbreviations →
This entry is for general education and is not medical advice. Abbreviation use varies between institutions; always confirm in context.