Nursing Homes Under Siege from More than COVID-19

U.S. nursing homes would benefit from a less punitive approach to performance improvement, according to Doctors Without Borders, the international medical humanitarian organization that has been assisting U.S. nursing homes with their response to COVID-19. The organization recently conducted in-person infection prevention and control trainings and provided technical support and wellness sessions to staff and residents in over 50 Michigan nursing homes and adult care facilities, and now is doing the same in Texas. Continue reading “Nursing Homes Under Siege from More than COVID-19”

OIG Issues Annual Work Plan/Long-Term Care Provider Initiatives Included

The HHS Office of Inspector General (OIG) has published its annual Work Plan for Fiscal Year 2016.  The Work Plan  summarizes new and ongoing reviews and activities that OIG plans to pursue with respect to federal health care programs, including Medicare and Medicaid, during the current fiscal year and beyond.  Work Plan agenda items for Nursing Homes, Home Health and Hospice are summarized below.  Continue reading “OIG Issues Annual Work Plan/Long-Term Care Provider Initiatives Included”

Court Decision on 60-day Overpayment Rule Imposes Heavy Burden on Providers

As a result of an August 3, 2015 federal court decision, nursing homes and other health care providers that participate in Medicare or Medicaid are well-advised to pay careful attention to the law that requires report and return of any overpayment within 60 days of the date on which the overpayment is “identified.”  In Kane v. Healthfirst, Inc. et al., the Southern District of New York found that the word “identified” means the date on which a provider is “put on notice” that a claim may have been overpaid.  The court said that providers cannot delay commencement of the 60-day period until the overpayment amount has been definitively determined.

The defendants in the case had argued that simply being on notice of a potential overpayment was not enough to trigger the 60-day repayment rule, which was a provision in the 2010 Affordable Care Act.  While recognizing the burden on providers to bring to conclusion a thorough and definitive investigation of a potential overpayment within 60 days, the court was firm in its finding, referring to the “demanding standard of compliance.”  However, there was a suggestion that prosecutorial discretion could act to assist a provider that did not comply with the letter of the law but acted diligently to attempt to determine an overpayment amount within the required timeframe.

This case, triggered by a former employee of one of the  provider defendants under the False Claims Act whistleblower provision, is important because it is the first time there has been a court opinion addressing the meaning of the term “identified” as used in the law.  Draft regulations published in 2012 have not been finalized.

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The opinions expressed on this blog are those of the author and are not to be construed as legal advice.

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