First Healthcare Compliance CONNECT January 2019

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CONNECT An Exclusive Monthly Publication for Clients DOJ Announces Updates to the Yates Memo Legal Degree Program Possibilities for Compliance Professionals Q&A How Do You Handle Negative Online Reviews from Patients?

10 Common OSHA Violations in the Healthcare Setting Client FAQ Corner New Training Modules

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Compliance Super Ninja Arturo Rocha, MBA

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EMR/Compliance Manager Center for Sports Medicine and Orthopaedics How would you describe your experience with First Healthcare Compliance?

It has been a great experience working with First Healthcare Compliance. The system is user-friendly and helps us be compliant and accountable within our organization. The account manager is always attentive to the Center for Sports Medicine needs and gives recommendations as needed.

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Would you rather have an unlimited international first class ticket or never have to pay for food at restaurants?

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What makes working at the Center very enjoyable is because people care about you both as a person and professional growth. There is a genuine spirit of cooperation and shared goals all revolving around helping our patients. The environment is extremely collaborative and everyone has a voice. All ideas are heard and the whole team works together to make them happen to ensure great patient care. All personnel supports each other and work together to offer creative feedback to ensure organizational goals.

I would rather have an unlimited international first class ticket to travel the world.

Each month we highlight one exceptional compliance professional chosen by our client services team. If our team notices your compliance chops, you might be the next Ninja!

CORRECTION: November CONNECT A question in the Compliance Super Ninja section about Tracie Palmer referred incorrectly to her facility. She works for Wallis Dermatology Associates.

In This Issue: Share Your Success Story

1st Talk Compliance: Legal Degree Program Possibilities for Compliance Professionals

Compliance Super Ninja

Infographic: 10 Common OSHA Violations in the Healthcare Setting

DOJ Announces Updates to the Yates Memo

Q&A How Do You Handle Negative Online Reviews from Patients?

New Training Modules

Client FAQ Corner 2

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Contact Toll Free: 888-54-FIRST

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demonstrates a lack of good faith in its representations will not be eligible for any cooperation credit.

DOJ attorneys now have discretion in resolving civil matters — they can offer less than maximum cooperation credit based on a company’s meaningful assistance, release individuals if no further investigation is warranted, and may consider an individual’s ability to pay when deciding whether to pursue judgement.

Rosenstein offered the following example to indicate how these policy changes would impact an investigation for violations of the False Claims Act:

DOJ Announces Updates to the Yates Memo

By Sheba Vine, JD, CPCO On November 29, during the International Conference on the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein delivered a speech announcing changes to the Department of Justice (DOJ) 2015 policy memorandum titled “Individual Accountability for Corporate Wrongdoing.”

This policy issued by then-Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates, commonly known as the Yates Memo, focuses on prosecuting individuals involved in corporate misconduct and rewards companies with cooperation credit when they provide all relevant facts about the individuals involved.

While the new policy revisions still reflect a continued focus on individual accountability, the revisions ease the burden for cooperation credit and provides more flexibility to DOJ attorneys in resolving these matters. Key changes are summarized below.

At the outset, Rosenstein made clear that the DOJ’s focus on pursuing individuals responsible for wrongdoing has not changed, which is still a top priority in every corporate investigation it conducts. Under the Yates Memo, companies must identify every employee involved in the alleged corporate misconduct regardless of relative culpability in order to receive cooperation credit from the government.

This “all or nothing approach” was met with concerns of inefficiency because it impeded resolutions and wasted government resources. Rosenstein stated that DOJ 4

investigations “should not be delayed merely to collect information about individuals whose involvement was not substantial, and who are not likely to be prosecuted.” As a result, the policy revisions are needed in order to “to work in the real world of limited investigative resources.”

The policy revisions impact criminal and civil investigations differently. For criminal matters, companies must identify those individuals who were substantially involved in or responsible for the criminal conduct in order to receive cooperation credit from the government. The DOJ seeks to refocus its prosecution efforts on “individuals who play significant roles in setting a company on a course of criminal conduct.”

For civil matters, companies are not expected to “admit the civil liability of every individual employee,” in order to qualify for cooperation credit – an expectation Rosenstein described as “inefficient and pointless in practice.” Instead, if a corporation wants to earn maximum credit, it must identify every individual person who was substantially involved in or responsible for the misconduct. To qualify for any credit, a company must identify all wrongdoing by senior officials, including members of senior management or the board of directors. In his speech, Rosenstein made clear that companies that conceal wrongdoing or otherwise First Healthcare Compliance, LLC © 2019

in theory, but in reality would not be sued personally. So our attorneys may reward cooperation that meaningfully assisted the government’s civil investigation, without the need to agree about every employee with potential individual liability.”

These policy developments reflect the government’s continued scrutiny of the actions of senior management and the board of directors. Thus, healthcare providers need to focus on building and maintaining a strong compliance culture from the top down.

“[A] company might make a voluntary disclosure and provide valuable assistance that justifies some credit even if the company is either unwilling to stipulate about which non-managerial employees are culpable, or eager to resolve the case without conducting a costly investigation to identify every individual who might face civil liability

The most comprehensive healthcare compliance course The Fundamentals is a user-friendly, four-module online course designed to help healthcare professionals understand the essential principles and practices of compliance.

Written by our “dream team” of healthcare providers and attorneys, The Fundamentals course is packed with useful, easy-to-understand information that covers HIPAA, OSHA, employment law and enforcement of federal healthcare laws.

The course takes less than four hours to complete, and the modules can be viewed in any order. A certificate of course completion is provided following successful completion of the online course and exam.

Contact Toll Free: 888-54-FIRST

Buy Course Today!

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Client FAQ Corner What should an employer do if an employee refuses to sign the Code of Conduct?

The employer should be concerned with why the employee is refusing to sign the code of conduct, which purpose is to outline the legal and regulatory requirements that must be followed for all individuals working in the facility, including all healthcare professionals.

Employer should follow its disciplinary policy for anyone that refuses to sign a code of conduct as this is part of the compliance program.

Does HIPAA permit a provider or its collection agency to communicate with parties other than the patient (e.g., spouses or guardians) regarding payment of a bill?

Yes. The Privacy Rule permits a covered entity, or a business associate acting on behalf of a covered entity (e.g., a collection agency), to disclose protected health information as necessary to obtain payment for health care, and does not limit to whom such a disclosure may be made. Therefore, a covered entity, or its business associate, may contact persons other than the individual as necessary to obtain payment for health care services. However, the Privacy Rule requires a the entity to reasonably limit the amount of information disclosed for such purposes to the minimum necessary, as well as to abide by any reasonable requests for confidential communications and any agreed-to restrictions on the use or disclosure of protected health information. See 45 CFR 164.501, 502(b), 506, 514(d), 522.

Explore the FAQs tab in your compliance solution to find answers to your compliance questions!

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HIPAA Privacy and Security This book provides an easy-to-understand overview of HIPAA and how it impacts healthcare companies and their employees.

WHEN:

Thu, April 4, 2019 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM

WHERE:

Widener University Delaware Law School

COST:

$249 - Early Bird until 3/1/2019

The Healthcare Compliance Symposium 2019 will bring professionals from the healthcare and legal communities together for a day of discussion and learning on the campus of Delaware Law School. Thought leaders will provide meaningful insight on time-sensitive topics including The False Claims Act in Healthcare, HIPAA Privacy and Security, OSHA in the Healthcare Setting, and HR Compliance in the Healthcare Setting.

Admission to the symposium includes continental breakfast and lunch.

HIPAA Privacy and Security Rules The Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act Breach Notification Requirements HIPAA Enforcement Examples of HIPAA-Related Situations

MORE INFORMATION / REGISTER 8

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Fraud and abuse can be a confusing part of Medicare compliance. Our latest eBook can help you navigate these tricky waters and help protect your organization from accidental infractions.

This comprehensive resource covers key topics including:

Components of a HIPAA Compliance Pan

Learning credits for CLE and CEU will also be available.

Get the eBook!

AVAILABLE SOON! Contact Toll Free: 888-54-FIRST

Read more about: • Legal Statutes covering Fraud, Waste, and Abuse • Penalties of the False Claims Act • Limitations of Stark Law • Analysis of the OIG and DOJ Annual Reports

Download your copy today!

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Q&A: How Do You Handle Negative Online Reviews from Patients?

By Catherine Short

Gavin Baker, President of Baker Labs will present the webinar “How to Handle Negative Patient Reviews” on January 23, 2019 at 12 noon ET. Here he discusses handling negative online reviews.

In this scenario, even a positive word-of-mouth review won’t be enough to compensate for such a lackluster online experience.

Remember: Experience is everything, and that goes for online as well as physical visits.

Nearly 70% of patients who read healthcare reviews are influenced in the selection of their next physician, hospital or medical practice, according to PwC Health Research and almost 3 out of 4 of adults search online for a doctor.

When it comes to online marketing for your medical practice or clinic, having a functional website and fantastic reviews will only get you so far. You still need to make use of popular social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. By not engaging with prospective patients on these platforms, you are missing out on key connections that could turn prospects into patients. Plus, these platforms give patients another way to express how much they love your practice and your doctors by leaving solid recommendations for their friends and family to see. So, when ramping up your online presence by updating your website and implementing a reviews system, be sure to think through a social media strategy plan that makes sense for your practice.

PwC’s Internet & American Life Project revealed that 72% of internet users say they purposely searched online for healthrelated information or for a doctor or health professional near them who could best treat their symptoms. Your current and future patients are turning to Google to find your practice, your doctors and to learn about how to get medical help and relief from their symptoms.

The great news is that you are in control of what they find when they search for you. To ensure visitors have a positive experience online when searching for you, pay attention to what is on your website (great pictures and content along with solid patient reviews), how it looks and how easy it is to navigate from a user perspective.

What kind of content should I post on Facebook and where does it come from?

No practice is perfect and patients will say negative things when leaving social media comments and online reviews. It happens and is beyond your control. What you can control is how you choose to respond to these comments and reviews.

We recommend setting up the following as soon as possible:

Patients want health information, and they want it from people they know and trust. With our clients, we start with the most common questions patients are asking the nurses, front desk and doctors. Think about it this way: if they are asking you certain questions – they are certainly Googling them as well.

This normally falls into questions about symptoms, treatment options, recovery time, pain level and cost. We recommend writing medical blog post articles, recording videos and creating graphics or infographics that describe the timeline or treatment. You can get this content from associations, create it yourself or hire an agency focused on healthcare marketing like Baker Labs to shorten your learning curve.

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Put a system in place to respond to negative comments before they happen and moving these conversations offline to a phone call as quickly as possible.

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Implement a plan to encourage patients to leave reviews for your practice and your providers. This way, you will have a steady stream of positive reviews coming in on a consistent basis, lessening the impact made by any negative reviews.

Understand people leave negative reviews because they are dealing with unmet expectations and want to voice their frustrations. They want to be heard and understood.

Responding quickly and in the right way tells that person that you care. Plus, everyone else can see how you effectively deal with negative feedback, so choose your words wisely.

Should I respond to a bad review?

This shows the person who left the review that you are listening and it shows everyone else who sees it that you are as well. Try to respond within 24 hours.

Can I say anything I want when responding to bad reviews?

You need to make sure every response you leave is HIPAA compliant and you aren’t using PHI or even acknowledging that patients are, in fact, patients. Let them know they have been heard and that you want to talk about it. We cover example responses in more detail on our webinar.

Can I stay HIPAA compliant while using social media?

Yes, you can. There are constraints, but as long as you aren’t sharing PHI when it comes to marketing and following best practices, you are educating your patients with health information. Plus, you are actually giving new patients what they want: health information from someone they trust. You should check with your attorney if you have questions or specific areas of concern.

The bad news is that if your website is ugly, hard to use and houses only negative reviews, prospective patients are going to write you off quickly without even physically visiting your office.

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What if someone says something negative about my practice online?

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Why doesn’t my website show up at the top of search results?

Most likely your website hasn’t been updated in years or there is something foundationally wrong with it. Maybe it’s not mobile friendly or it loads slowly. Any and all of these are factors Google uses when showing website pages in search results. The great news is that they can all be fixed — the first step is to figure out why. Check to see if your site is mobilefriendly with this Google tool — and if you want a snapshot of your search engine optimization (SEO) review – you can get a free 30 second report here.

Is online advertising appropriate for my medical practice?

Yes! Google and Facebook do have specific rules to follow when showing ads regarding medical conditions, symptoms and treatments, but as long as you stay inside those rules, you are good to go. The nice part about online advertising is that you are able to focus your ads to be seen by a specific demographic, so, if your practice is comprised of women ages 45-60 within 5 miles of your practice, you can focus your ads to be seen by this group.

Why doesn’t my website work on my iPhone?

Over 57% of website traffic happens on a mobile phone, according to BrightEdge. If your website doesn’t work well it’s most likely that your website isn’t mobile responsive, which is a type of website development that helps your website show up correctly formatted on mobile phones. Check to see if your site is mobile-friendly with this tool from Google.

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WORD SEARCH

hosted by Catherine Short On this month’s podcast, Catherine Short talks with Eileen Grena, Assistant Dean and Executive Director of GICLS a/k/a Graduate, International, Compliance and Legal Studies and Pam Beech, Director of Graduate Programs of Widener University Delaware Law School about “Legal Degree Program Possibilities for Compliance Professionals.” We will talk about available legal education for compliance professionals at the graduate-level. These compliance degrees are completed entirely online with no residency requirement. We will discuss how a compliance education can help boost a career and educate the public about the compliance degrees available for both lawyers and non-lawyers at Delaware Law School.

Listen weekdays at 7:30am, 3:30 pm, 11:30pm ET

Check out our Show Page!

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New Training Modules Now Available!

Training

Telemedicine Compliance Primer - Using Delaware as a Model When It Just Is Not Working: Progressive Discipline & Termination The Role of Medical Assistants in Medicare CCM and TCM Is Your 2019 Compliance Plan Ready?

Scanning the Unscannable: Improving Patient Flow in MRI Join us on Social Media!

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