Medicare releases FY2022 final and proposed rules on payment and fee schedules

When we meet with hospital boards to review the results of their audit, we are most often asked to share what we are seeing in the industry—and how their hospital compares with others in our client base. As we (hopefully) emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic, I wanted to see where we are as an industry after two challenging years. In reviewing our own benchmarking data, and reading this very comprehensive CFO Outlook Survey by BDO, it reinforced that these are challenging times indeed. 

The pressures of top line sustainability, cost containment, and recruitment and retention of talent are very real. And while healthcare providers are seasoned to the continual challenges and opportunities, the difference going forward, post-pandemic, will be what this looks like for rural providers without the influx of stimulus funds and beyond the initial surge of postponed surgeries. Based on the BDO survey, 69% of healthcare organizations surveyed expect an increase in profitability. Is your organization prepared to take the steps to make it happen? What is your financial resilience outlook?

You can read the survey here. If you would like to discuss further, please contact our Hospital Consulting team. We’re here to help.
 

Read this if you have not yet reported for Phase 1.

Phase 1 provider relief reporting portal

HRSA opened the Provider Relief Funds (PRF) reporting portal on July 1, 2021, for Phase 1 PRF reporting. In Phase 1, providers will be reporting on the use of PRF received prior to June 30, 2020. While Phase 1 reporting was originally due September 30, 2021, HRSA has provided a 60-day grace period for the reporting period. Providers will be considered out of compliance with the reporting requirements if they do not submit reporting by November 30, 2021. Providers can submit their reporting on the Provider Relief Fund portal. Please note:

1. Providers must register for the reporting portal, as this is not the same portal as the application and attestation portal. The portal registration must be completed in one session. Follow the link to the Portal Registration User guide. 
2. Providers can only report on eligible lost revenues and expenditures related to payments received before June 30, 2020. Providers are not yet allowed to report on payments received subsequent to June 30, 2020. See the June 11, 2021 Reporting Requirements Notice for more detail on reporting requirements.
3. The period of availability for Phase 1 lost revenues and eligible expenditures is January 1, 2020 through June 30, 2021.
4. It is extremely helpful to complete the HRSA provider portal worksheets prior to beginning the portal data entry. 
5. Providers should return unused funds as soon as possible after submitting their report. All unused funds must be returned no later than 30 days after the end of the grace period. (December 31, 2021)
6. Provider Relief Funds are considered federal awards under Assistance Listing Number (ALN) 93.948. Providers, both for-profit and not-for-profit, may be subject to a Uniform Guidance Audit if they expend more than $750,000 of federal awards during the provider’s fiscal year. 
7. Providers are able to retrieve their data submission from the portal if a copy was not retained during the submission process.

Your BerryDunn Hospital team is here to help you navigate the Provider Relief Fund reporting and compliance requirements. Please contact us if you have any questions or would like to talk about your specific situation. 

Read this if you are involved with financial statement audits or use audited financial statements. 

Almost as exciting as the look of a new outfit or (completion of) a renovation project, SAS 134 brings a new design to the auditor’s report accompanying your audited financials for periods ending on or after December 31, 2021. Why the new look, you ask? 

Users spoke and the AICPA Auditing Standards Board listened. The new standard significantly changes the layout and content of the report (including management’s responsibilities) and permits communication of key audit matters (areas of higher assessed risk of material misstatement, areas involving significant judgment, or significant events or transactions during the period). Implemented changes include: 

• The auditor’s opinion is now at the beginning of the audit report and otherwise strengthens the transparency for the auditor’s opinion.
• The standard clarifies the responsibilities of both management and the auditors, strengthening the financial audit. 

Sample auditor’s report

The simplest way to relay the changes is with an example. The following report is a basic illustration in which an unmodified opinion was issued and the auditor was not engaged to communicate key audit matters. 

If you have questions or would like to speak to us about your specific situation, please contact us. We’re here to help.

Read this if you are a Skilled Nursing Facility (SNF) providing services to Medicare beneficiaries.

There are a few Skilled Nursing Facilities (SNF) reimbursement opportunities on the Medicare cost report. Two of them could reimburse providers for sizable expenses that the majority of SNFs experience every year: the Utilization Review (UR) and Medicare bad debts. 

Utilization Review: Medicare cost report opportunities

UR meetings historically focused on managing lengths of patient stay and reducing costs. The implementation of the SNF value-based purchasing program and the related incentive payment adjustment, which resulted in a reimbursement rate increase or reduction by up to 2%, led some facilities to increased physician or medical director involvement in the UR management in order to improve clinical outcomes. 

With the increase in physicians’ UR time, there frequently is a cost increase for SNFs. CMS Provider Reimbursement Manual – Part 1, Chapter 21, Section 2126.2, outlines the requirements for 100% reasonable Medicare program UR cost reimbursement.  The only mechanism for SNFs to get reimbursement for these costs is through the Medicare cost report. 

Why is this important? BerryDunn maintains a database of SNF Medicare cost report filings and analyzes the data annually, looking for trends and opportunities to help providers optimize available reimbursement. The cost report data shows that from 2016 to 2019 only 1.95% of rural SNFs and 2.82% of urban facilities claimed reimbursable Medicare UR costs. Of the facilities claiming UR costs, the median requested reimbursement was $9,000 or $2.07 per Medicare patient day. 

Figure 1 Source: HCRIS as filed full utilization SNF cost reports, 2017 - 2019

Optimize your reimbursement: Utilization Review checklist available

To support SNFs with reimbursement for these costs, BerryDunn’s healthcare consulting team has developed a checklist that provides insight on the Medicare cost report opportunities. Download the Utilization Review checklist.

Read this if your facility or organization has received Provider Relief Funds.

The rules over the use of the HHS Provider Relief Funds (PRF) have been in a constant state of flux and interpretation since the funds started to show up in your bank accounts back in April. Here is a summary of where we are as of June 14, 2021 on HHS’ reporting requirements. Key highlights:

These requirements apply to:

• PRF General and Targeted Distributions
• the Skilled Nursing Facilities (SNF) and Nursing Home Infection Control Distribution
• and exclude:
  • the Rural Health Clinic COVID-19 Testing Program
  • claims reimbursements from HRSA COVID-19 Uninsured Program and the HRSA COVID-19 Coverage Assistance Fund (CAF)

This notice supersedes the January 15, 2021 reporting requirements.
Deadline for Use of Funds:

Recipients who received one or more payments exceeding $10,000 in the aggregate during each Payment Received Period above (rather than the previous $10,000 cumulative across all PRF payments) are subject to the above reporting requirements 

Responsibility for reporting:

• The Reporting Entity is the entity that registers its Tax Identification Number (TIN) and reports payments received by that TIN and its subsidiary TINs.
• For Targeted Distributions, the Reporting Entity is always the original recipient; a parent entity cannot report on the subsidiary’s behalf and regardless of transfer of payment.

Steps for reporting use of funds:

1. Interest earned on PRF payments
2. Other assistance received
3. Use of SNF and Nursing Home Control Distribution Payments if applicable (any interest earned reported here instead), with expenses by CY quarter
4. Use of General and Other Targeted Distribution Payments, with expenses by CY quarter
5. Net unreimbursed expenses attributable to Coronavirus, net after other assistance and PRF payments by quarter
6. Lost revenues reimbursement (not applicable to PRF recipients that received only SNF and Nursing Home Infection Control Distribution payments)

PORTAL WILL OPEN ON JULY 1, 2021!

Access the full update from HHS: Provider Post-Payment Notice of Reporting Requirements.

Read this is if you are at a healthcare organization and considering telehealth options. 

Given the COVID-19 emergency declaration, telehealth service regulations have been greatly modified to provide flexibility and payment. The guidance on telehealth is very dispersed and can be difficult to navigate. Here are some FAQs based on the many questions we have received. If you have questions related to your specific situation, please contact us. We're here to help.

UPDATED: Are RHCs and FQHCs now eligible as distant site providers for telehealth services? If so, how will they be paid by Medicare?
Yes, the CARES Act includes RHCs and FQHCs as distant sites during the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency (PHE). Distant site telehealth services can be provided by any health care practitioner of the RHC or FQHC within their scope of practice. The practitioners can provide any distant site telehealth service that is approved as a distant site telehealth service under the Physician Fee Schedule (PFS) and from any location, including from the practitioner’s home. CMS has approved an interim payment rate of $92 for RHCs and FQHCs for these services. The rate is based on the average payment for all PFS telehealth services, weighted by the volume of those services paid under the PFS. This rate will apply for services furnished between January 27, 2020 and June 30, 2020. Modifier “95” must be included on the claim. In July 2020, these claims will be automatically reprocessed and be paid at the RHC all-inclusive rate (AIR) and the FQHC prospective payment system (PPS) rate. Reprocessing will begin when the Medicare claims processing system is updated for the new payment rate.

For telehealth distant site services furnished between July 1, 2020 and the end of the COVID-19 PHE, RHCs and FQHCs will need to use RHC/FQHC specific G code, G2025, for services provided via telehealth. These claims will be paid at the $92 rate, not the AIR or PPS rates. If the COVID-19 PHE continues beyond December 31, 2020, the $92 will be updated based on the 2021 PFS average payment rate for these services, again weighted by the volume of those services.

For services in which the coinsurance is waived, RHCs and FQHCs must put the “CS” modifier on the service line. RHC and FQHC claims with the “CS” modifier will be paid with the coinsurance applied, and the Medicare Administrative Contractor (MAC) will automatically reprocess these claims beginning on July 1. Coinsurance should not be collected from beneficiaries if the coinsurance is waived.

UPDATED: Will telehealth visits of any kind affect my FQHC or RHC encounter rate?
Costs associated with telehealth will not affect the prospective payment system rate for FQHCs or the all-inclusive rate calculation for RHCs, but the costs will need to be reported on the cost report. Costs of originating and distant site telehealth services will be reported as follows:

• Form CMS-222-17 on line 79 (Cost Other Than RHC Services) of Worksheet A for RHCs
• Form CMS-224-14 on line 66 (Other FQHC Services) of Worksheet A for FQHCs.

What is telehealth versus telemedicine?
Telemedicine refers to a remote clinical service while telehealth is a broader term that embodies a consumer-based approach to medical care, incorporating both delivery of care and education of patients.

UPDATED: What types of service levels are available?
There are three main types of Medicare virtual services with different payment levels. Here are the key things to know for each type:

Telehealth visits

1. These are considered the same as in-person visits and paid at the same PFS rates as regular, in-person visits.
2. Pre-existing patient relationship requirements have been waived.
3. The patient originating site can be any healthcare facility or the patient’s home.

Virtual check-ins

1. These are brief communications in a variety of technology-based manners.
2. They do require the patient to initiate and consent to the check-in.
3. It cannot be preceded by a medical visit within the previous 7 days and cannot lead to a medical visit within the next 24 hours. 
4. A pre-existing relationship with the patient is required.
5. Common billing codes include HCPCS code G2012 (telephone) and G2010 (captured video or images).

E-visits:

1. These also need to be initiated by the patient in order to be billable and would be conducted using online patient portals (no face-to-face), for example.
2. A pre-existing relationship with the patient is required.
3. Common billing codes include CPT codes 99421-99423 and HCPCS codes G2061-G2063. 

The payment rate for these services will be $24.76 beginning March 1, 2020, through the end of the PHE, instead of the CY 2020 rate of $13.53, and should be billed using code G0071. MACs will automatically reprocess any claims with G00771 furnished on or after March 1, 2020, that were not paid at the new rate.

What codes can be billed as telehealth services?
Here is the listing effective as of March 1, 2020. 

Since this time, 85 additional codes have been added. Click here for the list. 

Do we need to request an 1135 waiver or are these changes covered by a blanket waiver from CMS?
A blanket waiver is in effect, retroactive to March 1, 2020 though the end of the emergency declaration. 

Is patient consent required?
Yes, patients must verbally consent to services. This includes brief telecommunications (which currently have a cost share for Medicare). We recommend it for all payers as a best practice.

Is there additional information expected from Medicare?
Yes, Medicare, Medicaid, and other payers are continually updating their guidance. 

What can we bill for telehealth services for Medicaid and insurance carriers?
This is the most problematic to track as it is continually evolving and every state and carrier is different. Providers must understand each payor’s requirements around audio and video, allowable CPT/HCPCS codes, modifiers, and place of service codes. As you have questions, please reach out to us so we can be sure to provide the most current answer.

Resources
Given how quickly information related to telehealth is changing, please feel free to contact us for the latest resources. 

Editor's note: read this if you are a CFO, controller, accountant, or business manager.

We auditors can be annoying, especially when we send multiple follow-up emails after being in the field for consecutive days. Over the years, we have worked with our clients to create best practices you can use to prepare for our arrival on site for year-end work. Time and time again these have proven to reduce follow-up requests and can help you and your organization get back to your day-to-day operations quickly. 

1. Reconcile early and often to save time.
   Performing reconciliations to the general ledger for an entire year's worth of activity is a very time consuming process. Reconciling accounts on a monthly or quarterly basis will help identify potential variances or issues that need to be investigated; these potential variances and issues could be an underlying problem within the general ledger or control system that, if not addressed early, will require more time and resources at year-end. Accounts with significant activity (cash, accounts receivable, investments, fixed assets, accounts payable and accrued expenses and debt), should be reconciled on a monthly basis. Accounts with less activity (prepaids, other assets, accrued expenses, other liabilities and equity) can be reconciled on a different schedule.
2. Scan the trial balance to avoid surprises.
   As auditors, one of the first procedures we perform is to scan the trial balance for year-over-year anomalies. This allows us to identify any significant irregularities that require immediate follow up. Does the year-over-year change make sense? Should this account be a debit balance or a credit balance? Are there any accounts with exactly the same balance as the prior year and should they have the same balance? By performing this task and answering these questions prior to year-end fieldwork, you will be able to reduce our follow up by providing explanations ahead of time or by making correcting entries in advance, if necessary. 
3. Provide support to be proactive.
   On an annual basis, your organization may go through changes that will require you to provide us documented contractual support.  Such events may include new or a refinancing of debt, large fixed asset additions, new construction, renovations, or changes in ownership structure.  Gathering and providing the documentation for these events prior to fieldwork will help reduce auditor inquiries and will allow us to gain an understanding of the details of the transaction in advance of performing substantive audit procedures. 
4. Utilize the schedule request to stay organized.
   Each member of your team should have a clear understanding of their role in preparing for year-end. Creating columns on the schedule request for responsibility, completion date and reviewer assigned will help maintain organization and help ensure all items are addressed and available prior to arrival of the audit team. 
5. Be available to maximize efficiency. 
   It is important for key members of the team to be available during the scheduled time of the engagement.  Minimizing commitments outside of the audit engagement during on site fieldwork and having all year-end schedules prepared prior to our arrival will allow us to work more efficiently and effectively and help reduce follow up after fieldwork has been completed. 

Careful consideration and performance of these tasks will help your organization better prepare for the year-end audit engagement, reduce lingering auditor inquiries, and ultimately reduce the time your internal resources spend on the annual audit process. See you soon.