HCPro.com: Laboratory Compliance Insider

Each month with Laboratory Compliance Insider you get more of our exclusive working tools: model guidelines, policies, forms, etc., that you can use to comply with OIG and CMS, reduce claim denials, and get paid in full and on time.

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July 2008 (Volume 5, Issue 7)	view entire issue

Court orders CMS to stop flawed bidding process
A California federal court ordered the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), acting for CMS, to halt a competitive bidding process that had been imposed on clinical labs serving Medicare beneficiaries in the San Diego, Carlsbad, and San Marcos communities. The court found that CMS attempted to impose a flawed bidding process for clinical laboratory services.

Five tips to ensure medical necessity compliance
To ensure that laboratory tests are medically necessary, your facility must do more than just abide by the rules. You must also make sure you document, monitor, and audit your compliance efforts. The most essential part of documenting medical ne-cessity is to ensure that your coding is up to date, says C. Anne Pontius, MBA, CMPE, MT(ASCP), senior director of quality systems at Expression Analysis, Inc., in Durham, NC. Furthermore, developments in national coverage determinations (NCD) make it necessary to constantly review your medical necessity policies and procedures, says Robert E. Mazer, Esq., a healthcare attorney and principal at Ober Kaler in Baltimore.

Other recently-published articles from Laboratory Compliance Insider:

LCI 2008 index

Coming soon: Labs get ready and debate rages as ICD-10 implementation date approaches

Acronym attack? Tips to survive the new MAC/RAC world

Quality control, compliance in the genomics era

OIG addresses lab concerns in its 2009 Work Plan

Signature requirements cause labs headaches

Debate over licensing for technologists continues

Keep the chargemaster from being a taskmaster

Joint Commission offers options to combat disruptive acts

Incident-to rules rescinded, laboratories need not worry

Genetic testing raises questions about laboratory tests

CoP rule hardens blood safety requirements

Laboratories celebrate landmark victory

Secrets to success in processing medical necessity paperwork

A proactive approach to self-disclosure protocols

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