DHS Will Refund Hospitals Related to Medi-Cal Reimbursement for Some Lab Tests
The Department of Health Services will refund California hospitals for using outdated data to calculate Medi-Cal reimbursement rates for some clinical laboratory tests, the Sacramento Bee reports.
Dallas-based Innovative Managed Care Systems used Web-based software to review laboratory test billing data from 47 hospitals in the state. The company found that DHS used a lower 2002 refund rate to pay California hospitals for Medi-Cal beneficiaries' laboratory tests from 2003 until June 2005. The company's review indicated that the state could owe hospitals $2 million.
DHS agreed to refund all underpaid hospitals, not just those whose bills were examined by Innovative Managed Care Systems, the Bee reports.
Stan Rosenstein, deputy director of Medi-Cal care services, said officials already knew about the payment error but declined to confirm the amount that will be refunded (McIntosh, Sacramento Bee, 9/19).