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Home Health & Hospice Week

Industry Note:

RACs Make Money For Returning Money Too

Published on Wed Sep 14, 2011

A new CMS report reveals the results of Recovery Audit Contractors nationwide, and the numbers are surprising. During 2010 (the first year RACs began actively identifying and correcting improper payments under the National Recovery Audit program), RACs collected $75 million from providers that were overpaid by Medicare. On the plus side, RACs do appear to be returning money to providers that were underpaid. During 2010, RACs returned $16.9 million to providers. All told, they found $92.3 million in incorrect Medicare payments during fiscal year 2010 (which spans from Oct. 1, 2009 through Sept. 30, 2010), according to the FY 2010 Report to Congress: Implementation of Recovery Auditing at CMS document. Clarification: Many providers dub RACs "bounty hunters" because they are paid on a contingency fee basis, which means that they get a percentage of the improper payments that they identify. However, the RACs collect a contingency fee on money reimbursed [...]
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