Last week, The Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas announced an agreement to pay the U.S. Department of Justice a $1.4 million transaction for fraud charges against Medicare and Medicaid. While Parkland met many of the problems that threatened its federal funding, it remains under the control of the federal government. The Dallas County Public Hospital is included for two years in a five-year enterprise integrity agreement, focusing on billing issues and patient safety concerns. Business integrity agreements, which generally require tighter government control over billing processes, are fairly common. Parkland was also forced to accept an agreement on the integrity of quality care, which requires the implementation of patient safety measures. „We see this comparison proposal as a fair solution for Parkland to advance the improvements we have made in the areas of quality and patient safety,“ Parkland Chief Executive Robert L. Smith said in a written statement. „We have worked directly with the OIG to develop this proposed agreement and will be part of our roadmap for sustainable improvements in the areas of quality of care, patient safety and compliance with legislation. We are committed to respecting both the letter and the spirit of the CIA`s terms and conditions by running our compliance programs – Ethics and Quality – Safety. It is not clear whether the move to the new hospital could complicate any aspect of the agreement. Hospital staff need to learn new work processes in a more modern facility. On Wednesday, Parkland`s board of directors authorized its management to enter into a settlement agreement with the U.S.
Department of Justice and the Medicaid Fraud Unit of the Texas Attorney General`s Office in response to a whistleblower complaint filed in March 2010 by Dr. Lien Kyri. Cherry, a longtime Louisiana hospital officer and state health official, noted that this was his first experience in managing such an agreement with the federal government. The agreement with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services requires hospital staff to abide by government rules, starting with a code of ethics and an article of ethics that was to be signed by each worker. An annual refresher course is also required. Parkland`s agreement a born out of a complaint filed by a former doctor trained at the hospital in physical medicine and rehabilitation. He stated that he was required to consult patients who did not need physical rehabilitation. The hospital will be billed to the government for unnecessary procedures, he said.
In 2013, according to the HHS inspector general, only nine other U.S. health facilities – including nursing homes and dental services – had been forced to enter into such agreements. Although the hospital did not accept responsibility, the proposed company integrity agreement – which outlines certain requirements in terms of compliance, ethics, clinical quality, patient safety and reporting procedures – requires parkland to be monitored by both an audit body and a quality audit organization. „Parkland is making progress in meeting the requirements“ of the agreement, said Paul Leslie, the hospital`s general counsel. „None of us are trying to suggest that everything is perfect. There is always room for improvement. In addition to the payment of nearly $1.4 million, Parkland agreed to enter into a five-year enterprise integrity agreement with the OIG (CIA) in exchange for the release of the agency`s administrative remedies. The CIA requires Parkland to comply with billing rules and report it to the OIG, but to monitor Parkland to ensure that patients receive adequate care.