Government Accountability Office

GAO: CMS Nursing Home Ownership Information Lacks Transparency

February 3, 2023 - CMS nursing home ownership information does not align with the characteristics of effective transparency tools, according to a report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO). CMS oversees the more than 15,000 nursing homes in the US that participate in Medicare and Medicaid, ensuring that the facilities meet certain quality standards. Past...


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House Committee Urges GAO to Examine Hospital Price Transparency Compliance

by Victoria Bailey

The House Committee on Energy and Commerce has urged the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to investigate compliance with the hospital price transparency rule following continuous reports of...

Federal Loan Repayment Alleviating Severe Clinician Shortages

by Jacqueline LaPointe

Providers practicing in areas with the most severe clinician services are receiving more workforce funding through National Health Service Corps (NHSC) programs that offer either loan repayment or...

Number of Medicare-Dependent Hospitals Falls by 28%

by Jacqueline LaPointe

The number of hospitals treating disproportionate volumes of Medicare beneficiaries declined by 28 percent from 2011 through 2017, and these Medicare-dependent hospitals (MDHs) received less additional...

GAO Finds Medicare Billing Codes for Care Coordination, Planning

by Jacqueline LaPointe

Care coordination and planning are becoming increasingly important to caring for the millions of Medicare beneficiaries suffering from two or more serious health conditions, such as diabetes and heart...

Medicaid DSH Payments Cover 51% of Uncompensated Care Costs

by Jacqueline LaPointe

Medicaid Disproportionate Share Hospital (DSH) payments covered about half of the uncompensated care costs incurred by qualifying hospitals nationwide in 2014, according to a Government Accountability...

GAO Finds Uptick in Rural Hospital Closures as Inpatient Use Falls

by Jacqueline LaPointe

Sixty-four rural hospitals closed between 2013 and 2017, more than double the number of rural hospitals closures in the prior five-year period, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently...

GAO Offers Steps to Enhance Medicaid, Medicare Fraud Strategy

by Jacqueline LaPointe

CMS demonstrates a commitment to preventing and combating Medicaid and Medicare fraud, but the federal agency’s anti-fraud efforts only partially align with the Government Accountability...

VA Next Gen Healthcare Supply Chain Program Needs Work, GAO Says

by Jacqueline LaPointe

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently found several issues with the VA’s implementation of a next generation healthcare supply chain management program. The federal watchdog argued...

GAO Identifies VA Provider Productivity Measure Shortcomings

by Jacqueline LaPointe

The VA lacks appropriate provider productivity measures and clinical efficiency models to accurately capture medical center performance, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently reported. A...

GAO: Medicare Uncompensated Care Aid Not Based on Actual Costs

by Jacqueline LaPointe

Medicare’s uncompensated care payments to hospitals do not account for the actual healthcare costs associated with treating large proportions of Medicaid and uninsured patients, according to a...

Patient Scheduling Still Problematic at VA Medical Settings

by Catherine Sampson

In a perfect world, the Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) patient scheduling system works effectively so veterans are able to access primary care physicians easily. Unfortunately, many veterans...

GAO Reports Inadequate CMS Federal Exchange Coverage Control

by Jacqueline DiChiara

Insufficient and inadequate policies and procedures from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) require greater levels of federal control to maintain effectiveness, says a report from...

Does Veterans’ Care Delivery Require Stronger Monitoring?

by Jacqueline DiChiara

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) via the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) spent over $58 billion last year providing care to over 6.5 million veterans, including an aging...

GAO: CMS MA Efforts Fail to Uphold Provider Network Adequacy

by Jacqueline DiChiara

The Administrator of the Centers for Medicaid & Medicaid Services (CMS) should make adjustments to the management of Medicare Advantage (MA) networks to tackle provider availability, validate MA...

GPO Funding Structure Could Impact Medicare Costs

by Ryan Mcaskill

A lack of HHS oversight created an environment where GPO fees are unchecked and increasing Medicare Costs. A recent study by the U.S. Government Accountability Office examined five large group...

Veterans Health Administration Mismanaging the Consult Process

by Ryan Mcaskill

A new study from the Government Accountability Office found problems with the how the VHA oversees specialty care. Last week, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) released the results of its...

CAGW criticizes CMS, Marilyn Tavenner for ACA expenditures

by Elizabeth Snell

Last week, Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) stated that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) had a “dismal record on financial accountability” and also knocked...