You should be, because the government is watching your billing.
One recent example is Ascension Michigan’s agreement to pay the government $2.8 Million for false claims allegations.
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In the recent settlement with Ascension Michigan, the government alleged that Ascension submitted false claims to federal healthcare programs for unnecessary chemotherapy and hysterectomies performed by a gynecologic oncologist.
Ascension Michigan discovered the problem through patient complaints and higher rates of surgical infections. Ascension then conducted a third-party peer review of a sample of the physician’s patients. The review found that less aggressive surgeries and interventions would have been appropriate.
If you aren’t paying attention to your billing, now is the time to perform an internal audit.
The government audits are increasing following the COVID-19 pandemic and scrutiny is high.
The time to protect your practice is now.
How can you protect your practice from government audits?
Make sure your billing is accurate.
Often, when Rickard & Associates is brought in to perform an audit, the physicians all believe they are billing accurately. However, we often find inaccuracies due to the template, errors, or misunderstandings.
Make sure that your EHR template is set up correctly for your practice.
Next, train your staff to bring up any concerns and have a way for them to report anonymously. Take those concerns seriously and fully investigate them.
Make sure to correct any areas of concern and provide adequate training to all.
It is always wise to hire a healthcare attorney to perform an audit to take advantage of a third party perspective with attorney-client privilege.
Let us know how often you audit your records by commenting below.
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