A new phishing scam targeting covered entities (CE) and business associates (BA) is disguised as an official communication from the Office for Civil Rights (OCR). In an alert released November 28, OCR advised CEs and BAs that a phishing email is being circulated on fake HHS letterhead with the signature of Jocelyn Samuels, OCR’s director.
This week’s Medicare updates include 2017 Annual Update to the Therapy Code List, a Proposed Decision Memo on Leadless Pacemakers, Provider Reimbursement Manual Hospital and Hospital Health Care Complex Cost Report Form CMS-2552-10 updates, and more!
The University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass) agreed to a $650,000 HIPAA settlement fine after a breach investigation revealed the university failed to implement basic security measures.
Hospitals with pending appeals before an administrative law judge or the departmental appeals board may see some relief. Eligible providers can settle denied inpatient claims that are currently under review for 66% of the net allowable amount in exchange for withdrawing certain pending appeals under the 2016 Hospital Appeals Settlement Process.
CMS removed seven codes from the inpatient-only list in the 2017 OPPS final rule, but decided not to change the designation of a code involved with several of the agency’s bundled payment models.
Single-use drug vial wastage and CMS’ implementation of the Quality Payment Program are in the spotlight in the Office of Inspector General’s (OIG) fiscal year 2017 Work Plan. The Work Plan, released November 10, outlines areas the OIG will scrutinize in the coming year and ongoing projects.
