Healthcare Compliance Services

Where Compliance is a Plan for your Success

Bryant Goldman, CEO and Val Johnson, Esq.

Ingen Technologies has contracted Total Healthcare Compliance to provide services for Secure Balance™ customers who purchase the Balance & Fall Prevention program. Total Healthcare Compliance is an experienced group recognized by their peers for providing accurate information and professional advice for matters concerning Medicare Guidelines and Regulations. The Secure Balance™ customer receives 5 hours of professional assistance from Total Healthcare Compliance to incorporate accurate information regarding vestibular function testing and therapy. These services include, but are not limited to, the following:

CPT-Billing and ICD-9 Coding
Proper and effective use of modifiers to ensure appropriate payment
Audit requirements and Claims processing
Testing qualifications and supervision requirements
Strategies to minimize post-payment risk
Documentation strategies to improve profitability

Total Healthcare Compliance, Inc. is a full-service medical consulting firm comprised of attorneys, business management experts, coding specialists and physicians from different specialties. We do not sell “canned” programs, because we know that every practice is unique. Instead, THC works with your own staff, management personnel, legal and financial advisors to design and implement solutions for the problems facing your practice.

Specific services for specific needs.

Our multidisciplinary team can help you with nearly any aspect of your practice, including incorporation/review of legal status; practice management; business development and marketing; compliance; education; hardware and software selection; and equipment sales.
We’ll consult on any one aspect of your practice… conduct a complete A to Z audit of your operations… or even provide daily, on-site management. Our degree of involvement is dictated by your needs and desires.

Incorporation/Review of Legal Status

LLCs, professional corporations, professional associations, medical professional corporations and trusts… every state has different regulations about how single, group and multidisciplinary practices must be incorporated. What’s more there are all kinds of federal regulations concerning the structure of health care practices- regulations about owners’ licensure levels, employment agreements, scope of services performed and much more. It takes an expert in health care lawyer to sort it out. Fortunately you’ve got two with THC. We’ll work with you to ensure proper formation of your new health care practice. If yours is an existing practice, we’ll review your corporation’s legal status to make sure you’re in compliance with all the state and federal regulations.

Practice Management

At Total Healthcare Compliance, Inc., our goal is to help you develop and grow a successful integrated health care practice. We have identified six key areas of a health care facility management that are crucial to your practice’s success.

Physical Plant- We’ll look for cost effective ways to improve your facility’s appearance, patient flow and utilization of space, while reducing your cancellations/no-show rate. We can suggest new, up-to-date diagnostic equipment that can help you provide better patient care and make it easier to demonstrate medical necessity.
Personnel- We’ll interview your office personnel to help you take the fullest advantage of your employees’ talents and abilities and to identify any weak spots in the day-to-day operations. If you’re having trouble finding key personnel, we can help with that too, thanks to our affiliation with several nationwide medical personnel services. We can also perform background checks on current employees and potential new hires to weed out those with a history of legal, licensure and financial problems.
Provider Agreements- We’ll review each policy and provide you with a written, abridged version of what is and is not covered. We’ll also outline how billing is to be performed for each provider.
Billing, coding, and collections procedures- Coding and billing criteria vary from carrier to carrier. Medicare and Medicaid have their own sets of requirements. Through regional seminars, intensive workshops and/or in-office training, we’ll instruct your personnel in billing and coding procedures. THC also offers a full range of forms to assist your practice’s billing, collection and coding departments. Our forms were designed with simplicity and ease of use in mind, based on direct input from our clients. Or, if you prefer, THC will handle your coding and billing for you.
Patient charts- We’ll review your patient charts to make sure you’re properly documenting medical necessity. On-site or long distance, it’s up to you—either way, we’ll help you streamline submissions and avoid costly errors.
Utilization of services- A thorough utilization review can pinpoint areas where your practice is above or below the norm as compared to similar practices. Over utilization can make you susceptible to fraud charges, while underutilizations can lead to malpractice suits and lost revenue. Knowing where you stand is vital to the well- being of your practice.

THC offers a comprehensive on-site review of your practice that includes a thorough assessment of all six key practice management areas. Of course, if you’d prefer, we’ll consult on an hourly basis and address just those areas you feel are in the need of the attention. THC also offers complete on-site management services, either start-up or an ongoing basis. We’ll provide a member of our staff to manage the day-to-day operation of your office, freeing you to concentrate on what you do best: patient care.

Corporate Compliance Programs

Lots of practitioners think they have no need for a corporate compliance program. If you are one of them think again.

Health care fraud is now the number-two law enforcement priority in the United States. The number of fraud and abuse cases investigated by the government rises each year—and now the private sector has joined the enforcement game as a result of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. And that’s not the only bad news. At one time, in order for a health care provider to be guilty of fraud, the element of “intent” had to be present. In many instances, the intent requirement has been reduced or eliminated. As a result, even health care providers with the best intentions can find themselves on the wrong side of the law.

Medical compliance is only a part of the issue. Consider OSHA, ADA, HHS, and DOJ—acronyms that, together, spell “trouble.” As if you didn’t have enough to think about already, you’ve also got to consider the state and federal regulations that effect small businesses—regulations about things like discrimination, sexual harassment, accessibility and worker safety. One of the easiest ways you protect yourself is by adopting and implementing a comprehensive corporate compliance program. Think of it as “preventative medicine.”

There are many advantages to implementing a compliance program. By far the most important benefit is the protection from prosecution it offers. Even if an investigator discovers a violation, you’ve made a good-faith effort to carry out a compliance program, criminal charges may be dropped and civil penalties minimized. What’s more, by implementing a compliance program, you reduce the likelihood of a whistle-blower suit, because your employees who observe a questionable practice occurring are more inclined to report it to management.

If that is not reason enough to implement a comprehensive compliance program, here’s another: Compliance plans are good business. A compliance program can help ensure that you bill for all of the services rendered. It can reduce reimbursement time by ensuring correct coding and sufficient documentation to prove medical necessity. And, it can enable you to respond in a timely and appropriate manner to investigation.

Just as important, a compliance program puts your employees on notice that you expect the highest standards of the behavior from them. And, it announces to the community that yours is a practice that takes ethics and integrity seriously.

THC takes a comprehensive approach to compliance. We examine all aspects of your organization’s day-to-day operations and identify any potential areas of exposure. Based on our findings, we help you develop and implement a corporate compliance program that meets the requirements of the entire alphabet soup of federal and state regulatory agencies.

Business Development and Marketing

The line between mainstream and “alternative” medicine narrows each year, while the amount of money spent on chiropractic, homeopathy, naropathy and nutriceuticals increase by the billions of dollars. The rapid growth of alternative medicine can have positive repercussions for the traditional and non-traditional physicians alike. “Physician supervised” forms of alternative medicine ensures that the patients get professional care while offering health care providers the opportunity to explore new areas of practice. THC can help you integrate new, complimentary areas of “alternative” medicine into your practice. We can also assist you in forming entities that include alternative medical practices and in developing and implementing protocols for alternative medicine practitioners.

When it comes to marketing and advertising medical practices, health care providers are subject to a slew of state and federal restrictions. At THC, we can help you get the best response for your marketing dollar without running afoul of marketing restrictions. We’ll review your advertising and marketing materials to ensure they comply with state and federal regulations. Or, if you prefer, we’ll handle the design and production for you. Brochures, newsletters, advertisements, give-always—we’ll make sure your advertising and marketing materials present your practice in the best possible light.

Educational Programs

These days, keeping up with the constantly changing state and federal health care regulatory scene is practically a full-time job. How do you find the time to keep yourself and your staff informed? THC can help. We offer seminars, in-office training and video programs tailored to the needs of your practice. Whether you need assistance with

Coding, billing, and collections
Compliance with state and federal regulations
Marketing
Practice management
Testifying at depositions and in court
Integrated alternative medicine practices

Or any other area of practice, we’ll provide you and your staff with the information and training you require.

Medical Office Assistance

Hardware and Software

THC’s medical technology experts can assist you in selecting the right computer equipment for your office. Or, we’ll help you upgrade your existing system to suit your growing needs. When it comes to software, our experts have reviewed a wide range of patient charting and billing software programs. If you’re searching for the perfect program for your particular practice, we can narrow down the field to several pre-selected options.

Medical Equipment Sales

THC has distributorships with many medical suppliers. We will work to obtain the best possible price for you on medical equipment, saving you the time and hassle of shopping around.

Informational Services

To keep you informed on issues important to health care providers, we offer a newsletter, web based resources and additional printed materials addressing hot topics such as regulatory changes, Medicare and Medicaid fraud and abuse enforcement efforts, developments in practice management and much more. Our informational materials are a “must” read for all health care providers who want to stay abreast of the latest news.

THC offers benefits that set us apart from other medical consulting firms.

Expertise. THC has assembled a first-rate interdisciplinary team of attorneys, physicians from various specialties including alternative medicine, business management experts, medical technology experts, coding experts and fraud experts.

Comprehensiveness. Our combined experience allows us to perform a complete audit of all areas of your practice. We can advise you on anything from coding and billing to local health department ordinances.

Cost-effectiveness. When you engage THC, it’s on your own terms. You tell us the areas of the practice you need help with, and how much help you want. For your convenience, we offer financing as well as deferred payment plans.

Availability. THC wants to be an ongoing part of your practice’s growth and success. We offer a free email hotline as well as numerous other support programs to keep you informed of changes in the health care arena.

1161 W. Safari Dr. Tucson, AZ 85704-2804
(520)742-0932 Fax: (520)-844-1153