Here is the best news from the provider outreach session conducted by CGI, the RAC for Region B:  Hospice audit issues are not on CGI’s radar screen. After stating this, (more…)

The RACs have not yet begun targeting hospices and may not until 2010. Why should hospices worry about them? No one knows at this point how intense the RAC scrutiny of hospices will be.  Could all this RAC concern be a case of much ado about nothing? (more…)

I had the opportunity to speak with a hospice executive director this week who stopped by the Weatherbee offices for a visit during her vacation/workshop on Cape Cod. She talked about how challenging it is to keep up with issues like the RACs given the amount of information she needs to absorb and process each day.  We also received a number of emails this week in response to the last e-newsletter asking us why we are focusing so much attention on the RACs and why they are important.  I thought perhaps a broad RAC overview in organized sound bites might be helpful. (more…)

CMS has awarded contracts to cover the four RAC regions.  The more we know and understand about all the RACs in general, the better prepared we will be to deal with them.  It is particularly important for hospices to become familiar with the RAC for their region. Let’s take a look at each one. (more…)

The very best, and maybe only defense against the RACs is education. The P-E-M strategy for dealing with the RACs focuses on education on two levels: 1) learning everything possible about what the RACs do, who they are and what to expect from them; and 2) making absolutely certain that all of the hospice’s clinical staff know how to assess patients for eligibility (for hospice care and for higher levels of care such as general inpatient and continuous care) and how to appropriately and thoroughly document that eligibility.

The articles in the Educate category of RAC Assistance for Hospice address these two areas: education about the RACs and about documentation.