WASHINGTON, DC – Between our work with Rep Renee Ellmers (R-NC) to introduce audit reform legislation, CMS officials being put on the spot at the House Ways & Means hearing last Tuesday, and the American Hospital Association suing HHS over the backlog, there is serious momentum building in DC on audit reform.
However, momentum must be supported by hard facts. That’s why AAHomecare is moving forward with its proposal to build and launch a system to track the Medicare audits hurting home care providers.
To help the industry move toward a true and complete picture of audit activity and its impact is no small undertaking. This is a long term commitment that will benefit the entire industry and AAHomecare is committed to making sure it is given the resources it needs to succeed. We have engaged Provider Consulting Solutions, the company that developed the AHA RACTRAC program, and will use their expertise and lessons learned from the AHA process.
To support this initiative, AAHomecare is embarking on a funding campaign that will run over the next two years to raise the $250,000 necessary for the audit tracking program.
The program will be funded through contributions from AAHomecare members and industry stakeholders. In just the first few days, the AAHomecare Executive Committee, along with the MED Group and VGM Group Inc, have already committed $27,500.
However, their generous support alone will not be nearly enough. Details about how to support the initiative will be rolled out in the coming weeks—watch @AAHomecare on Twitter for breaking news about the initiative. Let’s work together on behalf of the industry to collect and qualify the impacts of audits and present the compelling facts that policymakers cannot ignore.
Tom Ryan is president and CEO of the American Association for Homecare, Washington, DC.