Compliance Programs Mandatory?

In October, 2000, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) published guidance for developing a compliance program for individual and small physician practices. The OIG indicated at that time that developing a program was recommended but not mandatory. Ten years later, the voluntary nature of compliance programs is about to change. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) requires practices to implement a compliance program to maintain enrollment with Medicare or Medicaid. Final details regarding a deadline or the extent of the program have not yet been described. It is anticipated that the outline will resemble the guidance published in 2000. The document outlines seven elements for an effective plan. The 2000 guidance can be found at: http://oig.hhs.gov/authorities/docs/physician.pdf.