Health insurance companies use audits to ensure clinical and billing requirements are met. Even if an ABA provider is taking all the necessary steps to ensure that they are compliant, a health insurance company may still trigger an audit to ensure no issues are found.
An audit may be stressful for the owner of an ABA practice, regardless of its size, but smaller practices may not have the resources to deal with the additional requests by auditors when one occurs.
This could result in potential consequences — prepayment review, contract termination, or reimbursement requirements to pay back paid claims that are deemed non-compliant — that can put a practice at risk. There’s even the possibility of a fraud investigation. If widespread problems exist, that could mean not only financial loss but also loss of business and reputation for the company.
As daunting as an audit and its consequences may seem, here’s what you need to know to make an audit as painless as possible.
What triggers an audit?
An ABA audit can happen for many reasons. Providers should follow ABA business best practices in preparation for audits, as most will see them one or more times over the life of the business. Some of the common reasons an audit may occur include:
Higher use of specific codes
If you use a particular code more often than expected — often in relation to peers — this could trigger an audit.
Performing a higher frequency of service
Situations where you provide care more frequently than your peers could trigger an audit.
Previous problems, violations, or errors
If you have experienced claims denials in the past or a fraud claim, that could mean more frequent audits.
Complaints from patients
If a patient feels that you have incorrectly filed a claim or had another issue with your ABA paperwork or service, they may lodge a complaint with their health insurance provider.
Random review
Health insurance companies will perform random audits to ensure that all companies, even those without any claims issues in the past, are confirmed to be compliant.
ABA codes are permanent category 1 CPT codes
With the change to category 1 CPT codes, audits are more likely to occur.
Best practices to prepare for an ABA audit
Preparing for an audit before one is requested is the best strategy. That means taking proactive steps to maximize the information or data available to support your claims. Here are some key strategies to help minimize audit risks:
Do your research before you get audited
While you may think you are fully compliant and will never get audited, the reality is that even perfectly compliant companies will be audited from time to time. Ensure you understand how the audit process works and reach out to others to learn about their experiences so that you’re better prepared.
Standardization
Consistency is critical for health insurance companies. Ensure you are using standard protocols and templates in all evaluation processes. That way, there will be accurate, consistent documents to prove care needs. Showing medical necessity is a critical factor that auditors nearly always need to verify.
Minimize irregularities in billing
One key to passing an audit is providing accurate, organized information that clearly supports claims. Medical billing and coding consistency are critical to ensure proper payment calculations.
Expertise in billing
ABA billing expertise is important, as this is one of the most common concerns in audits. Having a process in place to minimize errors and using a medical billing service capable of ensuring clear documentation and practice management could help minimize audit risks.
Practice
Staging mock audits is an excellent way to find problems and fix them before they trigger a government audit. Mock audits can be eye-opening (especially when conducted by an experienced provider), as they can pinpoint common areas of concern and hidden problems you may not know exist.
Accuracy across the board
You must provide accuracy and consistency across all areas of the practice, from proper use of medical billing codes to reliable diagnoses. Maintaining accuracy and consistency includes avoiding HIPAA violations, ensuring no claims errors occur, and maintaining clear, standard fee schedules.
Document storage
Proper record storage can save you headaches down the road. While HIPAA rules must be in place, you should ensure that your records are comprehensive, locked, and hidden from anyone who isn’t on a patient’s care team.
Managing audits is key to long-term success. Without a plan, ABA practices may find it nearly impossible to pass these trying audits.
Missing Piece specializes in the services you need
Fortunately, Missing Piece offers the support you need to manage an audit with ease. By providing full ABA billing services, our ABA billing solution will ensure all your documentation is consistent and within compliance requirements. Our range of services also includes ABA compliance audit support, so if you experience an audit, you don’t have to go through it alone.
Contact Missing Piece to learn more about ABA audits and to get the support you need to ensure a smooth audit.