Finding 1239534 (2025-002)

Material Weakness Repeat Finding
Requirement
N
Questioned Costs
-
Year
2025
Accepted
2026-09-30

AI Summary

  • Core Issue: Inappropriate sliding scale fee adjustments were made for patients due to incorrect data entry in billing software.
  • Impacted Requirements: The adjustments did not align with the Organization's sliding scale fee policy, affecting billing accuracy.
  • Recommended Follow-Up: Management should train staff on the sliding fee policy and implement checks to ensure only eligible patients receive adjustments.

Finding Text

Conditions: Patients were given inappropriate sliding scale fee adjustments based on supporting sliding scale fee calculation documentation in accordance with the Organization's policy. Criteria: Out of 3,804 patients who received sliding scale fee adjustments, a sample of 40 patients who received sliding fee adjustments were tested. One patient was billed an inappropriate amount based on the Organization's sliding scale fee adjustment. Cause: Organization personnel recorded inputs to the sliding scale fee calculation, such as family size or annual household income, incorrectly in the medical billing software. Effect: Improper sliding fee adjustments were given. Recommendation: Management should ensure personnel understand the sliding fee policy and adhere to the requirements and guidelines set forth in the policy. Because the policy affects program income, procedures should be implemented to ensure that all patients are billed the appropriate amount based on the sliding fee scale and only individuals who qualify under the policy guidelines receive sliding scale fee adjustments.

Corrective Action Plan

Cause of Finding: Organization personnel recorded inputs to the sliding scale fee calculation, such as family size or annual household income, incorrectly in the medical billing software. This resulted in an inappropriate sliding scale fee adjustment for one patient identified during the audit sample. Action: The CFO will ensure that all personnel responsible for determining and entering sliding scale fee information understand and follow the Organization's sliding fee policy and established procedures. The Financial Coordinator, who was hired at the end of 2025, will provide additional oversight of the sliding fee adjustment process and will assist in ensuring that supporting documentation is reviewed and accurately entered into the medical billing software. The Financial Coordinator will review the documentation used to determine patient eligibility and the applicable sliding fee adjustment, including family size and annual household income. The Financial Coordinator will ensure that information entered into the medical billing software agrees with the supporting documentation and that the appropriate sliding fee adjustment is applied in accordance with the Organization's sliding fee policy. The Financial Coordinator will provide training and ongoing support to staff responsible for determining eligibility, calculating sliding fee adjustments, and entering patient information into the medical billing software. Training will emphasize the requirements of the sliding fee policy, including documentation requirements, family size, household income, eligibility requirements, and appropriate fee calculations. The Financial Coordinator will perform monthly audits of sliding fee adjustments to identify data entry errors and ensure that patients receiving sliding fee adjustments meet the requirements of the Organization's policy. The monthly review will include verification of supporting documentation, family size, annual household income, eligibility, and the sliding fee adjustment applied. Any errors identified through the review will be corrected in a timely manner, and the CFO will determine whether additional training or corrective action is necessary. The CFO will also review the sliding fee policy and related procedures to ensure they provide clear guidance to staff regarding the documentation, calculation, approval, and application of sliding fee adjustments. The Organization will maintain documentation of eligibility determinations, monthly reviews, and any corrective actions taken to support compliance with the Health Center Program requirements and to ensure program income is appropriately calculated and collected.

Categories

Program Income

Programs in Audit

ALN Program Name Expenditures
93.800 ORGANIZED APPROACHES TO INCREASE COLORECTAL CANCER SCREENING $515,953
93.778 GRANTS TO STATES FOR MEDICAID $251,666
93.224 HEALTH CENTER PROGRAM $169,430
93.332 COOPERATIVE AGREEMENT TO SUPPORT NAVIGATORS IN FEDERALLY-FACILITATED EXCHANGES $72,959
93.436 WELL-INTEGRATED SCREENING AND EVALUATION FOR WOMEN ACROSS THE NATION (WISEWOMAN) $35,539
93.898 CANCER PREVENTION AND CONTROL PROGRAMS FOR STATE, TERRITORIAL AND TRIBAL ORGANIZATIONS $33,642