Effective January 1, 2012, all standard and/or complaint surveys initiated on or after January 1, 2012, that generate an enforcement action, will be subject to the new Federal requirements governing the Independent IDR process. The State survey agency must develop a written process that will then be approved by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Revisit surveys associated with standard and/or complaint surveys conducted prior to the effective date are not affected by the new regulations.
The purpose of the Independent IDR process is to provide a nursing facility, under certain circumstances, an opportunity to dispute cited deficiencies through a process that is unrelated to the State survey agency. The circumstances under which nursing facilities qualify for the Independent IDR are those in which a CMS enforcement action is imposed and a civil money penalty (CMP) is (i) assessed; (ii) subject to collection or collected; and (iii) placed in an escrow account by CMS. Initially, CMS will limit the assessment, collection, and placement in escrow of CMPs to deficiencies cited at or higher than a G level.
Anytime CMS imposes and collects or proposes to collect a CMP, the Independent IDR must be offered to the affected nursing facility free of charge. CMS must offer the Independent IDR to the nursing facility within thirty (30) days of providing notice of the imposition of the CMP. The nursing facility must request the Independent IDR within ten (10) days of its receipt of the offer.
If you have questions or concerns regarding the foregoing or would like additional information, please contact your regular Hall Render attorney, or Todd Selby at tselby@wp.hallrender.com or 317.977.1440; Brian Jent at bjent@wp.hallrender.com or 317.977.1402; or David Bufford at dbufford@wp.hallrender.com or 502.568.9368.
