HCPro.com: Strategies for Health Care Compliance

News and real-life examples to increase the effectiveness of your compliance program. Strategies for Health Care Compliance will be your guide for avoiding fraud and maintaining compliance.

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April 2008 (Volume 12, Issue 4)	view entire issue

Consider all elements of HIPAA agreement life cycle
There was probably a time a few years ago when you asked your staff members to provide copies of every current contract with third parties. HIPAA required you to examine each contract to determine whether the third parties with whom you worked required access to your protected health information (PHI). Those that did require access became known as business associates (BA). You signed BA agreements with them to ensure that you were protecting your PHI, and you were HIPAA compliant-for about five minutes.

Compliance essentials for radiology departments/facilities
Take the top concerns of three radiology administration professionals to heart as they outline 2008's important features of compliance in imaging. Consultant: Cohesion is the key "In a perfect world, technologists would understand coding and reimbursement," as well as the compliance implications of tasks done or not done on a daily basis, says Stacie L. Buck, RHIA, CCS-P, LHRM, RCC, vice president of Southeast Radiology Management in Stuart, FL. "What I would love to see is technologists and coders working closely together, as each has valuable knowledge to share with the other."

Watch ESRD payments, implement control strategies
An OIG audit recently resulted in a hospital repaying more than $60,000 for laboratory services to end-stage renal disease (ESRD) patients the OIG claimed were improperly billed. Avoid a similar fate by implementing the tips our experts recommend. What the OIG said The audited hospital committed the following three errors, according to the OIG, when billing for laboratory services to ESRD patients: 1. Billing for services that should have been included in the composite rate

Take your board of director discussions to the next level
You may have noticed increased attention from the board of directors and compliance board recently. Spurred to action by federal rules related to corporate responsibility and heightened attention regarding healthcare nonprofit organizations, board involvement in compliance concerns is no longer simply "good business"; it is the law. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 set more-stringent rules for corporate executives and directors of all businesses. Many serving on private sector boards take that heightened awareness with them when they serve on nonprofit boards at hospitals. Also, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has shown an increased interest in 990 forms filed annually by nonprofits.

Other recently-published articles from Strategies for Health Care Compliance:

Coder vs. biller: Does this match have a referee?

Five tips to ensure laboratory medical necessity compliance

Train your staff with a compliance carnival

HIPAA and the modern blended, extended family

New York’s work plan serves as an audit cheat sheet

Patient status: Five tools to conduct internal audits

New ABN form means more options and more questions

Tips for compliant long-term care of short-stay patients

Help nurses and clinical staff comprehend compliance

Workers’ compensation: Understand rules for disclosures

Know your hospital’s rights

Use internal audits to find Medicaid problems

HIPAA quick quiz for physicians

Tools to teach physicians about HIPAA compliance

Get ready to audit POA

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