Tag: surety bond
In brief: CMS grants bond allowance, Dasco partners with PE firm
March 20, 2020Theresa Flaherty, Managing Editor
WASHINGTON - CMS is allowing providers to submit surety bond riders and/or page two of their bid surety bonds to make sure they meet Round 2021 requirements.
The allowance applies only to providers who uploaded a copy of a valid bid surety bond by the deadline for bid submission and have received noticed that the CBIC needs additional information to ensure the bond meets all requirements.
“AAHomecare reached out to CMS last week to request that bidders be allowed the opportunity to make...
Round 2021: CMS grants bond allowance
March 17, 2020HME News Staff
WASHINGTON - CMS is allowing providers to submit surety bond riders and/or page two of their bid surety bonds to make sure they meet Round 2021 requirements.
The allowance applies only to providers who uploaded a copy of a valid bid surety bond by the deadline for bid submission and have received noticed that the CBIC needs additional information to ensure the bond meets all requirements.
“AAHomecare reached out to CMS last week to request that bidders be allowed the opportunity to make...
Proposed changes for surety bonds: Counter abuses to the program, or place too heavy burdens on providers?
May 31, 2016HME News Staff
On March 1, 2016, CMS published a proposed rule that seeks to address a growing number of abuses of the federal healthcare program by certain Medicare providers. The rule* titled “Medicare, Medicaid, and Children's Health Insurance Programs; Program Integrity Enhancements to the Provider Enrollment Process” includes a number of provisions that directly concern providers and suppliers of Medicare.
These include an increase in requirements for disclosure of affiliations by providers,...
Texas: Surety bond issues galore
August 25, 2015Tracy Orzel
AUSTIN, Texas - Texas Medicaid is deactivating some DME providers for not having a current surety bond on file, even though, technically, they do.Provider Alicia Correa, owner of San Antonio-based Bexar Care Home Medical, lost $100,000 in Medicaid business over three weeks because the agency couldn't locate her original bond. At press time, Correa's provider number was on hold, even though the agency has since acknowledged that it does indeed have her bond.“It's a huge problem for many customers,”...
Is CMS *really* serious about saving money?
September 15, 2011Liz Beaulieu, Editor
Managing Editor Theresa Flaherty and I had an interesting conversation after we posted to our website this story about how CMS has failed to use the surety bond requirement to recover erroneous payments.
I probably don't need to remind you that in October 2009 CMS started requiring that HME providers obtain surety bonds of at least $50,000. Apparently, CMS has drafted procedures for recovering payments through surety bonds but the agency claims "significant personnel changes" have prevented it from...
Alabama: Providers roll with changes
November 23, 2010Liz Beaulieu, Editor
MONTGOMERY, Ala. - HME providers in Alabama are taking in stride recent changes to Medicaid and Blue Cross Blue Shield.
In October, the state's Medicaid program became the second in the country to require that certain HME providers obtain surety bonds, according to Michael Hamilton, executive director of the Alabama Durable Medical Equipment Association (ADMEA). The first: Florida.
"We negotiated exemptions for most of our members, so we did good," he said.
Exemptions include HME providers who...
Has the NSC got your number?
February 22, 2010Theresa Flaherty, Managing Editor
What's going on over at the NSC (Not Synergistic with CMS)? We ran a story last month about providers whose Medicare supplier numbers have been in limbo for months. Some had their numbers revoked; some gave them up until they could complete their accreditation surveys or obtained surety bonds.
I have received several calls in the past couple of weeks from providers still seeking answers, or, better yet, their billing privileges. Trust me: that makes us sit up and take notice.
It would seem the NSC...
No accreditation or surety bond? No problem. Here's a million bucks.
January 21, 2010Theresa Flaherty, Managing Editor
I just came across yet another article on Medicare fraud. The story lead off with—wait for it—a fake DME provider in Miami.
An article by Mark Potter on MSNBC.com reads:
"After knocking on the door, calling the office number and peering through the mail slot, they found no one inside the 250-square-foot facility, which had only a desk and a few medical supplies on shelves along the wall. "The equipment on the wall certainly wouldn't justify one percent of what's billed to Medicare," said...
Accreditation reprieve nears end
December 4, 2009Theresa Flaherty, Managing Editor
CMS is circulating a reminder to pharmacists: If you're not accredited, your time is almost up. In October, the deadline for accreditation was pushed to Jan. 1, 2010. We've seen a flurry of announcements in recent weeks from pharmacies who just received accreditation—those are the folks lawmakers and industry stakeholders had in mind when crafting the extension.
In the meantime, current health care reform includes a permanent exemption for pharmacies that bill Medicare for less than 5%...
Pharmacy extension could be a reality
October 2, 2009Theresa Flaherty, Managing Editor
Pharmacies are likely to receive an extension on getting accredited, but what do you do in the meantime?
Bill Popomaronis, from the NCPA which has been working with CMS to alleviate some confusion, sent me the following:
• If a pharmacy has voluntarily terminated from the Medicare Part B program OR has “stepped down” on their 855S forms (that is, indicating that the pharmacy would be providing only Part B drugs BUT not DMEPOS) and the National Supplier Clearinghouse (NSC) has processed...