GAO to CMS: Conduct fingerprint-based background checks
By HME News Staff
Updated 10:09 AM CST, Thu January 12, 2023
WASHINGTON – CMS needs to address risks posed by provider enrollment waivers and flexibilities that have been in place during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Government Accountability Office says in a new report. The GAO analyzed 47 waivers and flexibilities, such as waivers of about 7,300 fingerprint-based background checks for types of providers posing a high risk of fraud, waste and abuse, and found that Medicare took some steps to oversee providers but fell behind in others. In all, the GAO found that 220,000 providers enrolled under waivers and flexibilities from March 2020 through March 2022. DME providers represented a small portion of these enrollments (4%) but a large portion of revocations (83%). The GAO recommends CMS conduct fingerprint-based criminal background checks, increase the pace of revalidating provider eligibility, and evaluate opportunities for improvement in planning for future emergencies.
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