The so-called "bounty hunters" of health care may soon have a financial incentive to help you recover underpayments.
During the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' Nov. 18 special Open Door Forum on the recovery audit contract (RAC) demonstration project, CMS official Jerry Walker said CMS is exploring ways to give recovery auditors financial incentives for identifying underpayments. The auditors receive a fee based on the percentage of overpayments they recover, but there is currently no financial incentive for finding underpayments.
The RAC initiative is a three-year-long demonstration project that began earlier this year in California, Florida and New York for physicians as well as hospitals.