Owe Taxes? IRS Could Dock Medicare Reimbursement

Now that data bases are connected and talking with each other, this is another area where Business Intelligence is making a connection. Starting in October, CMS will subject 60% of Medicare fee for service payments to an IRS cross check, so get those back taxes paid or the Medicare checks could be even a bit smaller. Business Intelligence software allows for the cross queries to be made and individuals and facilities identified, and one more reason that many hospitals are engaging in implementing such, plus it makes the business of running a hospital or large clinical group much easier with real time reports available from a portal with a few clicks. CEOs can get real time figures on where the facility stands at any given time. BD

Health-care providers who treat Medicare patients owe more than $2 billion in back taxes.

That finding, out yesterday, is one in a series from the Government Accountability Office — but the subtext isn’t about the money, per se. OK, it’s always about the money. But in this case the Congress is pushing Medicare administrators to use a federal system that allows the IRS to garnish payments to government contractors who owe taxes.

http://blogs.wsj.com/health/2008/06/20/owe-taxes-irs-could-dock-medicare-reimbursement/