Compliance
2023 Star Rating Changes—CMS Advanced Notice for Review & Comment
CMS released the “Advance Notice of Methodological Changes for Calendar Year (CY) 2023 for Medicare Advantage (MA) Capitation Rates and Part C and Part D Payment Policies” on February 2, 2022, with feedback accepted until March 4, 2022. Some changes may impact Star Ratings for CY 2023. To submit comments or questions electronically, go to…
Read MoreAre You Prepared for Your Next CMS Program Audit?
Preparation is critical to produce accurate universes and achieve successful CMS Program Audit results. In November 2021, CMS announced they will send program audit engagement letters to sponsors, starting in February through July 2022. If you ask yourself when should your readiness for a program audit begin? The answer is NOW! CMS made several significant…
Read MoreHow to Produce AEP Documents & Manage Plan Benefits with Compressed Timelines
The second post in our AEP Best Practices series focuses on the critical path of the Annual Enrollment Period—how to produce AEP documents efficiently & manage plan benefits effectively with compressed timelines. It’s important to understand the risks and challenges with compressed timelines for health plans with several Plan Benefit Packages (PBPs). Here’s a graphic…
Read MoreAEP Enrollment Processing Tips—Do’s & Don’ts from End-to-End (E2E)
How well your organization handles a new enrollment during the Annual Enrollment Period (AEP) generally sets the tone for the upcoming contract year for you and your new member. Beginning with Sales and flowing to Enrollment Operations—it’s critical to understand specific actions that trigger reconciliation challenges and member abrasion. With CMS shifting the weight of…
Read MoreCMS Audit Updates—Proactive Steps to Ensure Readiness & Maintain Compliance
Success in any CMS audit depends on being prepared to ensure readiness and maintain compliance throughout the year. Taking proactive steps now to support future CMS audits will produce better results and experiences for health plans and create a greater level of confidence for participants. New Audit Protocols for CY2022 Earlier this year, CMS released…
Read MoreAEP Best Practices – How to Produce Compliant & Effective Member Communications
Planning for AEP (Annual Enrollment Period) As health plans prepare for AEP (Annual Enrollment Period), they face a multitude of challenges—ranging from compliance issues to mitigating risk related to timing, data, and documents. To help navigate these challenges, here are some key strategies and Best Practices for Compliant and Effective Member Communications we recently shared…
Read MoreHow to Build an Effective Compliance Monitoring Program & Support Ongoing Risk
A monitoring program is an important part of a health plan’s compliance program and provides valuable information to the Compliance Department to ensure the plan is meeting requirements. Effective monitoring requires coordination with operational areas and supports ongoing risk assessment. Monitoring not only provides a mechanism to detect compliance issues throughout the organization but also…
Read MoreWhat Do CMS’s Final Rule Updates Mean for Medicare Advantage Programs?
Every year, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) updates its Final Rule document that codifies the regulations for Medicare and Medicaid programs. After analyzing the complete 272-page Final Rule document—here are important regulatory CY22 changes worth noting: Medicare Communications and Marketing Guidelines (MCMG) document: While CMS believes it would be duplicative to produce…
Read MoreAn Advance Look at Medicare Advantage Benefits Changes for CY2022
Every year, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) updates its Plan Benefit Package (PBP) Software that Medicare Advantage (MA) and Part D plans use as part of their bid submissions. The PBP Beta Software is released in late January to allow plans to test and provide feedback before the full version is available…
Read MoreHow to Mitigate Compliance Risk & Improve Operations—An A-to-Z Approach
As the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) increases its scrutiny and escalates enforcement, Compliance managers are on guard to ensure regulatory standards are met—and fines, sanctions, or even termination from CMS programs, are avoided. How can Compliance and Operations managers mitigate compliance risk and improve operations? The best way to avoid compliance errors…
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