DES MOINES, IOWA (February 1, 2023) — The Health Resources and Services Administration has distributed nearly $170 billion in provider relief-fund payments to eligible health-care providers since April 2020. With the fund expended, the federal government has now started recipient audits. Join Hall Render attorney Ben Fee for this online seminar 2-3PM, Tuesday, February 14. Fee will discuss the government audits underway, what providers can do before a potential audit, and recommendations and strategies for navigating the audit process. The intended audiences for this program are members of C-suites and finance and legal teams.
The scope of each audit can broadly cover:
- Compliance with the terms and conditions attached to the receipt of relief fund payments;
- How an entity used these funds to reimburse eligible expenses;
- Lost revenue; and
- Specific relief fund compliance requirements such as the restriction against balance billing out-of-network patients for COVID-19 treatment.
The audits can be conducted by HRSA with nongovernmental contractors, the Office of Inspector General or other government agencies, and are in addition to the single-audit requirement to which many recipients are subject.
Despite the scope of the audit or which government agency oversees the work, providers should prepare for potential government audits now. Every provider relief-fund recipient must comply with the relevant reporting obligations and other relief fund requirements and restrictions. Non-compliance can result in the recoupment of some or all the applicable relief-fund payments.
Ben Fee practices exclusively in health law advising health systems and hospitals about reimbursement, regulatory, compliance, and corporate matters. He regularly advises clients about reimbursement and financial strategies, government reimbursement and payment matters, corporate structure, and reorganization, the 340B drug-discount program and corporate-compliance issues. Fee earned both his law and Master's in health-administration degrees from the University of Iowa.
IHA will provide recordings only to those who have registered for the program. For more information or to register, visit my.ihaonline.org/Events/Calendar-of-Events or call 515-288-1955.
