With the 2015 Work Plan in full gear, background screening is not getting any easier.

In fact, the Office of Inspector General continues to increase focus on screening practices in the healthcare industry, which underscores how vitally important it is for medical providers and/or compliance officers to be current and up-to-date on all federal and state laws concerning screening protocols, in order to ensure they are fully compliant.

The newly implemented Work Plan focuses on four different aspects related to background screening.

1. National Background Check – Employees of long-term care will be subject to national background checks conducted by the OIG, as is mandated by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.
2. Investigate Criminal Convictions – The OIG will probe the extent that individuals with criminal records are employed by home health agencies.
3. Hospital Employee Privileges – The OIG will regulate how hospitals evaluate medical staff candidates prior to granting them privileges. This will include an in-depth evaluation of the National Provider Databank and the candidates’ credential verifications.
4. Terminated Program Providers – There will be stricter scrutiny from the OIG to ascertain that states are adhering to requirements by Medicaid to discharge providers that have been terminated under Medicare, or other state Medicaid programs.

With the heightened focus of the Office of Inspector General, it’s essential that you have a legitimate system in place which thoroughly screens your employee recruitments and assignments, for both new and existing hires, because if you don’t – do not be surprised if you find yourself dealing with an excluded individual or entity.

Do you want a fool-proof and streamlined screening solution? Give us a call today to see how we can help!