Oct

14

Revenue Cycle Institute unveils RAC preparedness survey results

By Andrea Kraynak, CPC-A

The Revenue Cycle Institute has issued a report on a nation-wide survey of hospitals about their efforts to prepare for the permanent RAC program.  More than 700 hospitals nationwide participated in the survey.

While 71% of hospitals responding said they have a formal RAC preparedness program in place, the majority of programs were still in the early stages of development, focusing on initial attempts to complete risk assessments. Slightly under half of hospitals responding have designated a RAC coordinator. Most facilities have or are building RAC teams within their facilities, and the majority of those teams include a physician advisor in some capacity.

Detailed findings about the composition and activities of those teams are outlined in the full RAC Preparedness Benchmarking Report, which HCPro is making available only to selected clients at this time. The report also contains data from respondents about their budgets for outsourcing assistance with the RAC program and how they plan to track and manage appeals during the process.

The full report will be made available for the first time for attendees at the Medicare Compliance Forum, which begins this month on October 26th in Atlanta. The Forum will bring together industry experts to cover strategic approaches to RACs, Observation Status, and the role of physician advisors.

For more information about the Revenue Cycle Institute, the Medicare Compliance Forum, or the RAC Benchmarking Report, please contact HCPro Executive Editor Lori Levans at llevans@hcpro.com.