Can Your Practice Survive an Inspection by HHS?

By Joe Day, CPA

Image courtey of wikimedia

Medical practices routinely deal with a mountain of regulations.  That's a given.  However, HIPAA and ACA are two of the most dangerous laws to medical practices that have ever been enacted. Looming on the horizon are audits that could spell disaster for  medical practices of all types.  Evern worse, it’s not a matter of if but when Health and Human Services – Office of Civil Rights will be done chasing hospitals and larger medical facilities before turning their attention on medical practices.  

Many physicians have been burying their head in the sand and hoping an HHS audit will never come. The AMA has ceased fighting the battle to make it go away.  Meanwhile the fine for the first offense is $50,000, with $10,000 for each additional violation.  With fines like these, it won’t take long for an inspector to put most practices that are deemed non-compliant out of business. 

Financial Statements should be More than a Stack of Papers in a Drawer

By Joe Day, CPA

Image courtesy of flickr

I see this all too many times in my accounting business.  Many times, the CEO of a small business will glance at a financial statement I’ve sent, only to open the file drawer and put it in the folder with the last three quarters.  Never taking the time to consider the implications those financial statements provide is a missed opportunity.  Why?   “If you ignore the past, how can you focus on the future?”  A valid perspective of where your business has been and where it is now, is vital if you want to know where it is going.  More importantly, the answers to these questions can be had at a glance by looking at balance sheet.  Do you see a buildup in receivables? Need to look at the Aging Schedule?  Is Inventory sufficient for the next operating period?  Do you have the financial strength to borrow what you need to acquire inventory and equipment that will enable you to manage the growth you’re looking forward to?