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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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Issue 12, December 1, 2010 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Update your policies and procedures now; create timelines for checkpoints

  From the HITECH Act to increased HIPAA enforcement, the changes occurring now make a compelling...

• 10 tips for training your workforce to be HIPAA ready

  Educate employees on best practices. Train employees on how to identify a security incident...

• Medical record documentation makes Joint Commission top 10 noncompliance list for first half of 2010

  It should come as no surprise that medical record documentation made the list for top standards...

• Five tips to ensure HAC, POA, and never event compliance

  The present-on-admission (POA) indicator, hospital-acquired conditions (HAC), and never events...

Issue 11, November 1, 2010 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Don’t drop your guard when it comes to the flu? get vaccinated

  Fears about a widespread, deadly flu pandemic may have died down, but this year is no time to let...

• When is it a PHI breach vs. an internal incident?

  You want your staff members to report incidents when they suspect a privacy or security violation...

• Compliance with cameras in rooms; requesting donor information; access to records and legalities

  Q. We received a request under the California Public Records Act from the local newspaper for...

Issue 10, October 1, 2010 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Back to the drawing board

  Many HIPAA privacy and security officers now focus on meeting new regulatory requirements under...

• Red Flags Rule: Consider amending your BA agreements

  The Red Flags Rule applies to healthcare providers, but it also applies to many business associates...

• Take advantage of nine tips for RAC appeal success

  According to a July HCPro survey of approximately 500 healthcare providers, 56% have already...

• CMS proceeds with documentation 2.9% payment cut in FY 2011 IPPS final rule

  CMS issued the inpatient prospective payment system (IPPS) final rule to update policies and rates...

Issue 9, September 1, 2010 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Report card helps track timing and dating success

  After reading this article, you will be able to:  Discuss breaking points for levels of...

• Use this checklist to help evaluate your organization

  The HIPAA Security Rule requires covered entities (CE) to conduct periodic evaluations of their...

• HHS addresses privacy, security concerns in EHR program

  HIPAA privacy and security concerns with the government’s EHR certification program were so...

Issue 8, August 1, 2010 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Compliance officers highly educated, but not rewarded for ’stressful’ position

  The Strategies for Health Care Compliance (SHCC) 2010 Compliance Officer Salary Survey received...

• Beware: Laptop computers create a major security risk

  If staff members in your healthcare organization use laptop computers, you’ve just...

• Stay out of court with effective communication

  Most of the time, Bonnie Rush, RT(R)(M)(QM), president of Breast Imaging Specialists...

Issue 7, July 1, 2010 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Use PEPPER to improve coding compliance

  Aside from being a catchy acronym, PEPPER (Program for Evaluating Payment Patterns Electronic...

• Establish a robust coding audit program

  Many reasons justify establishing an internal auditing program. An organization may have a...

• HIM central to surviving recovery audit contractors as auditing activity is on the rise

  Recovery audit contractor (RAC) activity is picking up, but many healthcare providers are still...

Issue 6, June 1, 2010 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Use these cost-effective ways to ensure compliance

  Jaspinder Grewal is a self-described “techie” who knows that developing cost-effective...

• Distinguish between ABNs for covered, noncovered Medicare services

  When a patient receives an ABN, coders and billers now need to determine whether it’s...

• Lessons learned from MGH’s Joint Commission laboratory survey: Perform mock tracers, know the updated format

  Are you confident enough about your Joint Commission survey results to post them online...

Issue 5, May 1, 2010 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Seven steps to comply with the Red Flags Rule

  The focus of the Red Flags Rule is identity theft, said Rebecca Williams, RN, JD, partner and...

• Comply with CMS guidelines for cardiac, pulmonary rehab

  Cardiac and pulmonary rehabilitation program coordinators face plenty of challenges as they...

• Seven tips to keep your coding compliance program fresh

  Just because your coding compliance program is in place doesn’t mean it’s doing its job...

• Why you may lose money because of medical necessity

  Proving medical necessity can be a big issue in mammography because of the problems that sometimes...

Issue 4, April 1, 2010 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• California-based IRFs reflect on their experiences during RAC demonstration project

  PRG-Schultz deemed only eight of 440 record requests that Glendale (CA) Adventist Medical Center...

• Brush up on sequencing as RAC complex reviews get under way in your organization's region

  Sequencing is something with which coders continually struggle, says Shannon E. McCall, RHIA, CCS...

• Federal regulations emphasize encryption, risk assessments

  In October 2009, an orthopedic surgeon at Rhode Island Hospital operated on the wrong finger of a...

Issue 3, March 1, 2010 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Learn from other healthcare organizations' compliance mistakes

  Major breaches of patient information in 2009 break down into three types: snoopers, hackers, and...

• Q&A: Business associate requirements, audit log retention periods, and health plans

  Is there any regulation that defines the retention period for electronic health record (EHR) or...

• Prevent and react to outpatient never events

  In October 2009, an orthopedic surgeon at Rhode Island Hospital operated on the wrong finger of a...

• Five stumbling blocks hinder HIPAA compliance

  Many organizations are focusing on the new privacy and security requirements created by the Health...

Issue 2, February 1, 2010 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Red Flags Rule: Prepare for FTC?s June enforcement date

  Nonetheless, providers subject to the rule’s requirement to develop a program that mitigates...

• OIG includes readmissions, inpatient psych in Work Plan

  Inpatient psychiatric and inpatient rehabilitation hospitals should pay particular attention to the...

• Identify and audit top Medicaid enforcement targets

  Medicaid integrity contractors (MIC) are just one of many contractors initiating an ever-growing...

Issue 1, January 1, 2010 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Eliminate missed charges, errors to reduce lost revenue

  Operational inefficiencies, outdated technology, and silo thinking can all lead to lost revenue...

• Master modifiers to ensure accurate reimbursement

  Proper modifier use is a critical part of coding, billing, and reimbursement. Currently, coders can...

• Develop effective strategies for your breach notification response program

  Be determined and thorough, but also patient as you gather evidence and develop a smart game plan...

• HIPAA Q&A: NPPs, BA contracts, Red Flags Rule, and more

  Learn the answer to this and other tough HIPAA compliance questions.