OIG Published the 2015 Work Plan

This past week, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (“OIG”) published the Fiscal Year 2015 Work Plan (the “Work Plan”).  The Work Plan describes areas the OIG anticipates to focus on for the upcoming year.  The Work Plan focuses on various issues that are both ongoing and new for 2015 that apply to hospitals, nursing homes, hospices, home health services, medical equipment suppliers, and practitioners. 

With respect to hospitals, the OIG continues to focus on various policies and procedures related to outlier payments, new inpatient admission criteria, and the analysis of salary impacts on hospital cost reports.  In addition to these policies and procedures, the OIG intends to focus on hospital billing, quality of care, and safety issues.

Nursing homes, hospices, and home health services are also considered a specific focus area for the OIG in 2015, particularly in relation to billing and payment issues.  Finally, the OIG intends to focus on billing and payment concerns regarding ambulatory surgical centers, ambulance services, chiropractic services, and physical therapists.

In the forthcoming weeks Krieg DeVault’s Health Care Practice Group will be analyzing the Work Plan for the purpose of providing a detailed analysis of the various focus areas.  If you or your organization has any questions regarding the Work Plan, feel free to contact any of Krieg DeVault’s Health Care Attorneys.