On December 17, 2019, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Ranking Member Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) reintroduced legislation to address the backlog of Medicare appeals cases awaiting review before an...more
On November 7, 2016, in the pending American Hospital Association (AHA) v. Burwell litigation, HHS filed a motion for summary judgment. A central focus of HHS’s motion for summary judgment is assertions that “the backlog is...more
On December 8, 2015, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and ranking member Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) introduced the Audit & Appeals Fairness, Integrity, and Reforms in Medicare (AFIRM) Act of 2015 (S. 2368). ...more
Medicare’s implementation of post-payment review through private contractors who are overly aggressive in denying payments, combined with a severe backlog of cases in queue for hearing before an Administrative Law Judge...more
On June 3, 2015, the Senate Finance Committee passed an original bill that aims to streamline and improve the Medicare Audit and Appeals Process. The Medicare appeals process has recently faced scrutiny from industry leaders...more
On September 29, 2014, CMS released the Fiscal Year (FY) 2013 Recovery Audit Contractor (RAC) report. According to the report, RACs collected $3.65 billion in Medicare overpayments during FY 2013. In addition, the report...more
CMS is offering to pay hospitals 68 percent of the allowable amount for all claims that are currently on appeal. Specifically, CMS is offering to settle "inpatient status" claims at 68 percent of the "net paid amount" within...more
On August 4, 2014, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced that it would allow the Recovery Audit Contractor Program (RAC) to resume a limited number of reviews in August. The program has been dormant...more
The Federal Office of Medicare Hearings and Appeals (OMHA) was established in July 2005 to administer the Medicare appeals program. OMHA adjudicates appeals regarding Medicare entitlement and Medicare provider reimbursement....more