Q. A long-term care facility has deployed laptops that connect to a file server and are password protected. The laptops are not used to store PHI or other confidential data and are not removed from the facility. Do the laptop hard drives need to be encrypted?
At the Association of Clinical Documentation Improvement Specialists (ACDIS), questions on physician queries are never few and far between. Although AHIMA has published a couple briefs on the topic over the last decade, questions have still remained about how to implement a compliant and effective query process.
This year's Recovery Auditor Benchmarking Report surveyed 325 respondents, representing both small and large hospitals, from all four Recovery Auditor regions. It may not come as a huge surprise to many that the main theme of this year's survey is the expanding state of the Recovery Auditors (RA), and the fact that they continue to gain speed and extend their reach.
Q. Can paper patient records be kept in a public storage unit? The storage company we are considering has a digital entry at the main gate. We would also have a keyed lock on the storage unit door.
Successful appeals can actually lead to CMS policy changes. Facilities have been successfully appealing to receive Part B payments after a Medicare review contractor denied a Part A stay as not medically necessary. As a result, CMS is changing its policy on rebilling for Part B services.
