Recommendation: Our auditors recommended the Organization to review internal controls in regards to the determination, recording, and monitoring of the sliding fee process to ensure that appropriate sliding fee rates/categories are utilized for each sliding fee encounter and that the support for the sliding fee discounts is retained.
Explanation of disagreement with audit finding: There is no disagreement with the audit finding.
Action taken in response to finding: The Organization recognizes the deficiency of internal controls regarding determination, recording, and monitoring of the sliding fee process from application through adjustment. The Organization has acknowledged that along with our Finance Team being new to the position for all of 2023 along with the realization that our electronic medical record was making an automatic adjustment on the Federal Poverty Level. This automatic adjustment issue has been resolved. We also reviewed the monthly adjustments and have implemented a monthly oversight process to review adjustments made to patient accounts.
If the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has questions regarding this plan, please call Tricia Lippert, Comptroller at 970-327-0537.