OIG Work Plan 2013 – Medical Equipment and Supplies

If you are not aware, every year the OIG ( Office of Inspector General) produces a report on what they plan to audit and review for the upcoming year. The new report does not take past items of interest off the table.

Here are some highlights for medical equipment suppliers:
1. They will review Accreditation Organization and their process for approving providers.
2. Service code modifier KX indicates the patient meets the medical criteria and upon request their is information that supports the medical need of the patient. In audits, they have found that providers have little to no documentation to support medical need. Make sure you read the medical records you obtain from physicians ordering services to ensure they include documentation that supports services you have provided.
3. In audits of lower limb prostheses, they have found in 267 providers audited no history of the patient having a lower limb amputation. I would recommend if you are providing prostheses, you obtain where the amputation was done. Medicare may not have documentation because it was not paid for by Medicare or change of physicians.
4. It appears they will be looking at reimbursement for several items and comparing it to other payor sources to see if they can reduce their reimbursement or frequency for items such as erect aids, back orthoses, parenteral nutrition, and CPAP (frequency).
5. Diabetic supplies will be reviewed for: a) see if medical records corroborate the IDDM as compared to NIDDM (making sure IDDM isn’t submitted just to bill for more supplies), b) multiple supplies, c) make sure supplies are not auto shipped, d) patients requests refill, e) the quantity of supplies left is documented at the time of request for refill, f) compares supplies provided to the competitive bid areas, g) see if “non-mail” order supplies were actually mailed, if they are in competitive bid areas, and h) IF supplies are mailed but KL not applies to indicate so the provider receives a higher rate of reimbursement.

If you have not started your compliance program audit and risk assessment protocol, these are some key areas to look at to reduce your business risk. Ask physicians to provide copies of medical records at the time of the order.

Remember, to look at the OIG Work Plan from 2012.  I outlined hightlights last year that you really need to review if you did not and continue to include those moving forward.

You may find the the OIG Work Plan details at https://oig.hhs.gov/reports-and-publications/workplan/index.asp and see Medicare Part I for Parts A & B.

Angela Miller of Medical Auditing Solutions LLC has been in health care compliance, auditing, billing, collections and HIPAA for over 18 years.  Ms. Miller is Certified in Healthcare Compliance.  Ms. Miller has made it the  focus of the business to help providers run their businesses efficiently, collect money, and maintain compliance with federal and state regulations and coverage criteria through compliance program development, management and training.  Ms. Miller is very experienced with Medicare & Payer audits.  Ms. Miller ran a very successful compliance program for over 5 years for the largest private held HME/Pharmacy provider in the US at the time.  Ms. Miller  also works as a contract compliance officer to provide an avenue to compliance training to staff, implementation of policies, as well as handling anything that affects cash flow from the initial intake to back-end collections. You can visit our website at Medical Auditing Solutions LLC.

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Accountable Care Expo – Dallas – Medical Auditing Solutions LLC August 1 2012

As many of you know the Patient Protection Accountable Care Act has a mandate requiring the implementation of cost containment managed care of patients, or Accountable Care Organization (ACO).  Many have been sitting on the sidelines waiting for the US Supreme Court Ruling on, and since they upheld ObamaCare….this is moving forward.  So, join Dallas area providers as they collaborate on HOW IN THE HECK to implement programs locally and make it work.  Providers and patients need to take a valid interest in being proactive versus treating the present situation.  You can view the agenda and register for the Dallas Accountable Care Expo to be held August 1, 2012 all day attendance is free except for the luncheon.  If you are not in the Dallas area, there are ACO Expos planned for Chicago and Las Vegas with others in the works.

Angela Miller, President of Medical Auditing Solutions LLC will be speaking on the Compliance Program Requirement.  All participants in an ACO must have a compliance program in place to participate so before March 2013.  Ms. Miller has over 18 years experience in corporate compliance programs, healthcare billing, collections, and coding audits.

Edward Vishnevetsky, Healthcare attorney with Munsch Hardt will be the luncheon Keynote Speaker on “Obstacles with ACO.”  Have you ever been able to listen to an attorney for the cost of lunch?  Well, mark this on your calendar and register now.  Mr. Vishnevetsky will also be speaking on the implications of the US Supreme Court Decision to uphold ObamaCare.

Bring your questions, concerns, and ideas on August 1, 2012.  It will be a day of speakers and exhibitor booths.

Angela Miller of Medical Auditing Solutions LLC has been in health care compliance, auditing, billing, collections and HIPAA for over 18 years.  Ms. Miller is Certified in Healthcare Compliance.  Ms. Miller has made it the  focus of the business to help providers run their businesses efficiently, collect money, and maintain compliance with federal and state regulations and coverage criteria through compliance program development, management and training.  Ms. Miller is very experienced with Medicare & Payer audits.  Ms. Miller ran a very successful compliance program for over 5 years for the largest private held HME/Pharmacy provider in the US at the time.  Ms. Miller  also works as a contract compliance officer to provide an avenue to compliance training to staff, implementation of policies, as well as handling anything that affects cash flow from the initial intake to back-end collections. You can visit our website at Medical Auditing Solutions LLC.

Webinar on What is a Compliance Program 101!

Medical Auditing Solutions is providing a webinar in conjunction with The Cornerstone Insurance Group (Cornerstone) to discuss the Basic Compliance Program Requirements.  We will learn what a compliance program is, what laws require it, the elements of a compliance program, and how the program can be beneficial to the healthcare provide.

Any and all healthcare providers (medical and dental practices as well as ancillary providers such as DME, Home Health, Hospice, etc.) taking Medicare and Medicaid should attend.

No CEU credit is formally given, but you will be welcome to send the handout received post attendance to your accrediting agency and ask for credit.  Some will provide and the worse they can do is say no.

The Cornerstone Insurance Group (Cornerstone) in no way endorses the accuracy of the information being provided.  In registering for this program, you will release and hold Cornerstone harmless of any and all actions you take as a result of this call.  This call is basic information and is simply an avenue for you to educate yourself on compliance program requirements.  This call in no way provides legal advice or provider specific advice without adequate documentation to review.  This is informational purposes only.

Cornerstone providers Total HR management & products including benefits management, Total Insurance products, Wellness Management Services.  Read more about the services Cornerstone offers you may find services that could benefit your organization.  They are primarily in Missouri and surrounding states but do cover additional states.

Program Title:  Compliance Program Basics and Elements

Date:                     July 24, 2012

Time:                    11:30 am-12:30 am CST

Cost:                      Complimentary

Register:              https://cc.readytalk.com/r/yhypbz3hj2p

About more about the speaker and Medical Auditing Solutions LLC:

Angela Miller of Medical Auditing Solutions LLC has been in health care compliance, auditing, billing, collections and HIPAA for over 18 years.  Ms. Miller is Certified in Healthcare Compliance.  Ms. Miller has made it the  focus of the business to help providers run their businesses efficiently, collect money, and maintain compliance with federal and state regulations and coverage criteria through compliance program development, management and training.  Ms. Miller is very experienced with Medicare & Payer audits.  Ms. Miller ran a very successful compliance program for over 5 years for the largest private held HME/Pharmacy provider in the US at the time.  Ms. Miller  also works as a contract compliance officer to provide an avenue to compliance training to staff, implementation of policies, as well as handling anything that affects cash flow from the initial intake to back-end collections. You can visit our website at Medical Auditing Solutions LLC.

AAOE – Developing Effective Elements of a Compliance Program Webinar

Angela Miller, CHC and President of Medical Auditing Solutions LCC will be discussing the reason you must have a compliance program, the deadline, and the elements of an effective compliance program.  We will discuss how to make these elements effective.  After the Supreme Court Ruling on Thursday, we know PPACA is here to stay so let’s get started with the compliance program development and it can improve your overall business.

This program was offered at the national AAOE meeting in New Orleans in May 2012; however, due to a funeral I had to cut the program short.  It has take a little bit of time to get this setup, but we are ready to make this available by webinar and will still have 1 hr AAPC credit.  Also keep in mind, you can ask other credentialing organizations if they will consider CEUs for the certification you have.  You will need proof of registration & attendence, this printed out with the learning objectives, and possibly the course material (which may be the materials since they will not be posted on AAOE’s website).  They can only say No.  If you registered for the New Orleans conference, please mention that as there will be no charge to my understanding.  For those of you interested that are not AAOE members or did not attend the Annual Conference, you may still purchase the attendance below.

Please contact AAOE direct about registration at Register Now

This program will be about 1.5 hours in length.

Mark your calendars for the AAOE’s upcoming Webinars:

• July 10, 11:00am–noon Central time: The Technical Side of the ICD-10 Conversion – The Untold Story sponsored by AAOE and Coker Group  
  

• July 19, 11:00am-12:30pm Central time: Developing Effective Elements of a Compliance Program sponsored by AAOE
  

• August 1, 11:00am–noon Central time: Improving Efficiency in the Office Setting sponsored by AAOE and TransPortal

 Save the date for the 44th Annual Conference in San Diego, CA: April 28-30, 2013

About the speaker:

Angela Miller of Medical Auditing Solutions LLC has been in health care compliance, auditing, billing, collections and HIPAA for over 18 years.  Ms. Miller has made it the  focus of the business to help providers run their businesses efficiently, collect money, and maintain compliance with federal and state regulations and coverage criteria through compliance program development, management and training.  Ms. Miller is very experienced with Medicare & Payer audits.  Ms. Miller ran a very successful compliance program for over 5 years for the largest private held HME/Pharmacy provider in the US at the time.  Ms. Miller  also works as a contract compliance officer to provide an avenue to compliance training to staff, implementation of policies, as well as handling anything that affects cash flow from the initial intake to back-end collections. You can visit our website at Medical Auditing Solutions LLC.

Senate Finance Committee Seeks Feedback on Fighting Fraud & Abuse as They Look at ZPICs

Reposted from email blast received May 2, 2012.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 2, 2012
CONTACT:  Julia Lawless/Antonia Ferrier (Hatch)              (202) 224-4515
                            Communications Office (Baucus)                          (202) 224-4515 

HATCH, BAUCUS LEAD FINANCE COMMITTEE MEMBERS IN BIPARTISAN EFFORT TO COMBAT WASTE, FRAUD, & ABUSE IN
MEDICARE & MEDICAID PROGRAMS
In an open letter to members of the health care community Senators write, “Drawing on the collective wisdom and accumulated insights of thousands of professionals and individual experiences could offer a fresh perspective and potentially identify solutions that may have been overlooked or underutilized.”

WASHINGTON – Today, six members of the Senate Finance Committee, led by Ranking Member Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.), announced a bipartisan effort to begin soliciting ideas from interested stakeholders in the health care community regarding effective solutions to improve federal efforts to combat waste, fraud, and abuse in the Medicare and Medicaid programs. Joining Hatch and Baucus in the effort are:  Senators Tom Coburn (R-Okla.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), and Tom Carper (D-Del.).

In an open letter to members of the health care community, the Senators wrote, “We believe federal efforts would be strengthened by input from members across the health care community – providers, payers, health plans, contractors, non-profit entities, consumers, data analytics entities, governmental partners, and patients. Drawing on the collective wisdom and accumulated insights of thousands of professionals and individual experiences could offer a fresh perspective and potentially identify solutions that may have been overlooked or underutilized.”

This week, the lawmakers invited interested stakeholders to submit white papers offering recommendations and innovative solutions to improve program integrity efforts, strengthen payment reforms, and enhance fraud and abuse enforcement efforts. Submissions are due by June 29, 2012. A summary document highlighting key proposals will be compiled and released later this year.

The Senate Finance Committee has jurisdiction over the Medicare and Medicaid programs.

To view a signed copy of the letter click HERE.

Below is the full text of the letter:

May 2, 2012

To Members of the Health Care Community:

According to the Government Accountability Office (GAO), few programs are as much at risk for fraud, waste and abuse as the Medicare and Medicaid programs.  Estimates of the amount of fraud and misspending in these programs vary widely, from $20 billion to as much as $100 billion. Just this week, testimony before the Senate Finance Committee underscored the seriousness of this problem, as witnesses testified that while much has been accomplished in the fight against fraud and abuse, much more needs to be done.  As Senators and members of the Finance Committee, we have a duty to ensure that taxpayer funds are being spent wisely.

Combating fraud in Medicare and Medicaid has long been a challenge for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), the Department of Health and Human Services Inspector General (HHS OIG) and the Department of Justice (DOJ).  To date, numerous efforts have been made to reduce fraud, yielding a mixed record of successes and failures.  We believe federal efforts would be strengthened by input from members across the health care community – providers, payers, health plans, contractors, non-profit entities, consumers, data analytics entities, governmental partners, and patients. Drawing on the collective wisdom and accumulated insights of thousands of professionals and individual experiences could offer a fresh perspective and potentially identify solutions that may have been overlooked or underutilized.

Today we are announcing an effort to solicit ideas from all interested stakeholders in the health care community, regarding solutions and suggestions for how to better prevent and combat the multi-billion dollar problem of waste, fraud and abuse in the Medicare and Medicaid programs.  We invite you to submit white papers offering your best ideas, built on years of experience and insight.  We want to know what areas you see for improvement in current program integrity efforts, as well as additional solutions that we should consider. Working together, we hope to identify innovative solutions that will provide taxpayers with a better return on the investments being made to combat the overpayments in these federal health care programs.

Below are the general categories in which we seek input, though some recommendations may include multiple categories:

&#61623      Program Integrity Reforms to Protect Beneficiaries and Prevent Fraud and Abuse

&#61623      Payment Integrity Reforms to Ensure Accuracy, Efficiency and Value

&#61623      Fraud and Abuse Enforcement Reforms to Ensure Tougher Penalties Against Those Who Commit Fraud

 

Entities interested in submitting white papers should email a PDF or Microsoft Word document to ProgramIntegrityWhitePapers@finance.senate.gov by June 29, 2012.  Submissions should include summary information about the entity or individual submitting a white paper, as well as phone and email contact information. White papers should be as succinct and concrete as possible.  When possible, please include cost-benefit or potential savings information.  Our staff will review submissions and compile a summary document highlighting key proposals later this year.

We appreciate your submission of thoughtful and constructive solutions, as we work to conduct targeted oversight to improve federal efforts to reduce fraud and abuse in Medicare and Medicaid. Together, we believe we can improve program integrity and be better stewards of taxpayer dollars.

Sincerely,

BAUCUS
HATCH
COBURN
WYDEN
GRASSLEY
CARPER

###

Angela Miller Speaking at AAOE Conference New Orleans May 2012

We are delighted to announce the course being presented by Angela Miller, President of Medical Auditing Solutions LLC: Developing Elements for an Effective Compliance Program, has been approved for 1 CEU through AAPC for your LIVE presentation. AAPC provides physician-based medical coders education and professional certifications.

American Association of Osteopathic Executives

Course Information:

Course Title:  Developing Elements for an Effective Compliance Program

Monday, 5/21/2012, from 3:15pm-4:30pm

Location: Hilton New Orleans Riverside  Room:  Belle Chase, subject to change

Register Now through the AAOE Conference Registration site:

http://www.aaoe.net/displaycommon.cfm?an=1&subarticlenbr=97

We look forward to seeing you at the conference and on the Riverboat Ride on Sunday, May 20, 2012. Call us to schedule an appointment to learn what we do or to learn what you need to ensure you have in place for your compliance program as well as your HIPAA Privacy & Security Programs.

Angela Miller of Medical Auditing Solutions LLC has been in health care compliance, auditing, billing, collections and HIPAA for over 18 years.  Ms. Miller has made it the  focus of the business to help providers run their businesses efficiently, collect money, and maintain compliance with federal and state regulations and coverage criteria through compliance program development, management and training.  Ms. Miller is very experienced with Medicare & Payer audits.  Ms. Miller ran a very successful compliance program for over 5 years for the largest private held HME/Pharmacy provider in the US at the time.  Ms. Miller  also works as a contract compliance officer to provide an avenue to compliance training to staff, implementation of policies, as well as handling anything that affects cash flow from the initial intake to back-end collections. You can visit our website at Medical Auditing Solutions LLC.

OIG Work Plan 2012

I participated in a call on Thursday January 19, 2012, on the OIG Work Plan for 2012.  Please reference the link for the full OIG Work Plan spelled out by provider type.  Many items on the Work Plan never change but there were a few points I felt important to draw your attention to for risk management purposes.  Here are a few notes I made because I think the audit risk is high since the result can be subjective:

1.  Outpatient Observation Billing

2.  Critical Access Hospitals:

A.  Distance to nearest, non-critical access hospital

B.  Herceptin and other Chemo Drug quantity

3.  Hospice because 82% of patients do not meet criteria to be admitted to hospice.

4.  Incident to Services by non-qualified personnel.  Even Blue Cross and Blue Shield is recouping and extrapolating on commercial claims for mid-level practitioner billing.  Make sure modifier is used when appropriate and the mid-level meets the licensing requirements to provide the services billed.

5.  Off Label Prescriptions.  Physicians ordering a drug that is approved for Diagnosis A but the drug is used for diagnosis B.

6.  Home Health-but not specific because they are going to review 2010 billing before they decide.

7.  Dialysis and ESRD Drug costs.  What is the drug cost to the provider versus the reimbursement.

8.  Contracts providers have with other providers/facilities.  Make sure you have a health care attorney to review the contract before executing because the health care attorneys are familiar with the Stark and Anti-Kickback provisions which typically the corporate business attorney does not have to consider.

9.  Checking employees, vendors, and providers against Sanction Databases MONTHLY.  You may find the federal links on my website.  The states have their own links.

10.  NY Medicaid reduced the annual revenues to $500K in Medicaid/Medicaid HMO/Managed Care Organizations (MCO) funds for compliance program requirement.

11.  Compliance Program Requirement under Federal Deficit Reduction Act that required all healthcare providers to have a compliance program in place by 2007 if their annual collected revenue of State reimbursement was $5M or more.  This would include Medicaid and respective Medicaid HMO or MCO.

12.  As of 2013 a healthcare compliance program is required for all providers billing Federal or State plans no matter what the annual billing revenue may be.  This would include dental practices because they bill Medicaid!

13.  Overpayments must be disclosed and refunded within 60 days of identification that it is an overpayment.  Failure to refund this money can result in “False Claims” charges and penalties.  Ensure you have someone that is accountable for working your credit balance reports monthly.  Keep documentation of these reviews and refunds issued as a result in a manner that can easily be explained and found.

The OIG Work Plan can be used to determine risk analysis, structure audit plans, and determine growth opportunities.

Do you have a Healthcare Compliance Program?

Do you review the OIG Work Plan Annually?

What else do you review to determine your audit plan?

We can help you analyze the status of your healthcare compliance program and ensure you have focused on the correct risks for your business model.  We are the compliance expert with a vast history and a cost effective way to ensure your compliance program is operating and managing your risk.

Angela Miller of Medical Auditing Solutions LLC has been in health care compliance, auditing, billing, collections and HIPAA for over 18 years.  Ms. Miller has made it the  focus of the business to help providers run their businesses efficiently, collect money, and maintain compliance with federal and state regulations and coverage criteria through compliance program development, management and training.  Ms. Miller is very experienced with Medicare & Payer audits.  Ms. Miller ran a very successful compliance program for over 5 years for the largest private held HME/Pharmacy provider in the US at the time.  Ms. Miller  also works as a contract compliance officer to provide an avenue to compliance training to staff, implementation of policies, as well as handling anything that affects cash flow from the initial intake to back-end collections. You can visit our website at Medical Auditing Solutions LLC.

PRESS RELEASE: KYMESA Announces Partnership with Medical Auditing Solutions LLC

Medical Auditing Solutions LLC (“MAS”) is excited to announce its partnership with Kentucky Medical Equipment Suppliers Association (“KYMESA”).   KYMESA has selected MAS to be their preferred vendor for Healthcare Compliance, HIPAA,  and Billing Analysis Programs.

Angela Miller is the founding owner of MAS a company specializing in Healthcare compliance & HIPAA privacy program development and training, billing analysis, and cash flow management.  Ms. Miller spent 12 years in HME starting here in Kentucky where she grew up and her family continues to reside.  She prior experience  as a compliance officer where she managed a very proactive successful program for 5 years.

MAS just released MAS Compliance University which has 4 e-learning programs currently with 3 more to be uploaded for compliance and HIPAA privacy training.  These programs have a pretest, required one hour program, required test and evaluation all of which are tracked and can be exported to excel for client records.  MAS also provides billing compliance audits which not only keeps you in compliance with the coverage criteria but will help improve the overall efficiency of the business processes as she understands the importance of running lean with the reimbursement cuts and competitive bidding on the table.

Don’t forget a formal compliance program is required to be in place by 2013.  If you are not doing annual HIPAA privacy training and don’t have security policies, this is required.

You may contact Kentucky Medical Equipment Suppliers Association about their membership benefits and how they work on the state and federal level:

KYMESA

#394, 1303 US 127 S

Suite 402

Frankfort, KY 40601
Cell (407) 435-2667
Fax (502) 416-0328

Teresa Camfield, Director

Angela Miller of Medical Auditing Solutions LLC has been in health care compliance, auditing, billing, collections and HIPAA for over 18 years.  Ms. Miller has made it the  focus of the business to help providers run their businesses efficiently, collect money, and maintain compliance with federal and state regulations and coverage criteria through compliance program development, management and training.  Ms. Miller is very experienced with Medicare & Payer audits.  Ms. Miller ran a very successful compliance program for over 5 years for the largest private held HME/Pharmacy provider in the US at the time.  Ms. Miller  also works as a contract compliance officer to provide an avenue to compliance training to staff, implementation of policies, as well as handling anything that affects cash flow from the initial intake to back-end collections. You can visit our website at Medical Auditing Solutions LLC.

PRESS RELEASE: Compliance University Rollout

September 9, 2011

Medical Auditing Solutions LLC is excited to announce the release of our new service called “Compliance University.”  The Compliance University focuses on the healthcare regulatory compliance annual training requirements for all employees.  HIPAA requires annual privacy and security training for all employees (2003 & 2010) respectively.  Compliance (billing, contracts, and relationships) is required as part of the Healthcare Reform Act and the Patient Protection Accountability and Affordable Care Act due 2013.  This training is only one aspect of an effect Compliance program.  Privacy and Security is primarily monitored, audited and investigated by HHS and Office of Civil Rights.  Compliance is primarily monitored, audited, and investigated by CMS, OIG, HHS, FBI.  The monitoring, auditing, and investigation may start in other federal and state government areas.

All programs are general in nature and meant for any type of health care providers.  They are between 40 minutes and 1 hour.  Each program is followed by a test of comprehension, an evaluation that is required to receive the completion certificate.  The Compliance University will provide the company with status, completion, grade reports.  We have additional programs to be released within the next few weeks as well to complete the set.  The programs contain examples and explanation for various health care industries so the knowledge obtained can be applied in any setting.

We look forward to helping you with your compliance program training as well as other areas of development and tracking that you may need to complete.  Check out our website at www.MedicalAuditingSolutions.com and Compliance University.  Mention this press release “PRESS” and receive 10% discount.

FBI-Federal Bureau of Investigation

HHS-Health and Human Services

OCR-Office of Civil Rights

OIG-Office of Inspector General

Angela Miller of Medical Auditing Solutions LLC has been in health care compliance, auditing, billing, collections and HIPAA for over 18 years.  Ms. Miller has made it the  focus of the business to help providers run their businesses efficiently, collect money, and maintain compliance with federal and state regulations and coverage criteria through compliance program development, management and training.  Ms. Miller is very experienced with Medicare & Payer audits.  Ms. Miller ran a very successful compliance program for over 5 years for the largest private held HME/Pharmacy provider in the US at the time.  Ms. Miller  also works as a contract compliance officer to provide an avenue to compliance training to staff, implementation of policies, as well as handling anything that affects cash flow from the initial intake to back-end collections. You can visit our website at Medical Auditing Solutions LLC.

Compliance Program Development Required by 2013

Have you started developing your compliance program yet?  Do you have a compliance program that is incomplete or not as active as it should be?

The Health Care Reform Act and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act require a compliance program be implemented by 2013 for all health care providers and dental providers that bill Medicare and Medicaid or any federal and state funded programs. The OIG (Office of Inspector General) has had suggested compliance program guidance for several years for hospital, physicians, DME and home health. I would recommend health care providers start planning by using these OIG guidelines because it will take at least 9 months to have a program implemented completely. A compliance program will also help your business run more efficiently if the program is managed correctly.

Compliance programs focuses business operations & management, contracts, relationships, billing, and the laws associated with each. Two key components to ensure success for the program is executive support and employee participation.   A compliance program  is more than policies.

The elements of a compliance program include:

1. Compliance Officer, which may hold several positions in smaller agencies.

2. Compliance Committee, best to have managers or supervisors from various departments to be a solid advisory committee.

3. Standard of Conduct covers various topics from Stark Law, Antikickback statute, Company funds, Investigations & legal matters, billing expectations, complaint reporting, and much more.

4. Policies and Procedures expand some sections of the standards of conduct such as the billing section.

5. Training of at least 5 hours per year, in addition to the training for privacy and security annually.

6. Auditing and Monitoring help ensure the risk areas for the company and identified by the OIG stay within the regulations and coverage criteria, prevents fraud and abuse or at least early detection, and training to prevent the repeat of erroneous actions.

7. Hotline for reporting,even if it is a local phone number for small companies with 1 to 2 locations. Complaint reporting should not be limited to a hotline.  Complaints should be allowed by email, mail, and fax as well. You need a hotline poster, but it does not have to be elaborate or expensive.

If you can you help with your compliance program, we have extensive experience in health care compliance program development and management.

Angela Miller of Medical Auditing Solutions LLC has been in health care compliance, auditing, billing, collections and HIPAA for over 18 years.  Ms. Miller has made it the  focus of the business to help providers run their businesses efficiently, collect money, and maintain compliance with federal and state regulations and coverage criteria through compliance program development, management and training.  Ms. Miller is very experienced with Medicare & Payer audits.  Ms. Miller ran a very successful compliance program for over 5 years for the largest private held HME/Pharmacy provider in the US at the time.  Ms. Miller  also works as a contract compliance officer to provide an avenue to compliance training to staff, implementation of policies, as well as handling anything that affects cash flow from the initial intake to back-end collections. You can visit our website at Medical Auditing Solutions LLC.