GAO’s recommendations database contains report recommendations that still need to be addressed.
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As of October 25, 2020, there are 4812 open recommendations, of which 473 are priority recommendations. Recommendations remain open until they are designated as Closed-implemented or Closed-not implemented.
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Recommendation: To ensure efficient use of federal resources, the Administrator of CMS should account for Medicaid payments a hospital has received that offset uncompensated care costs when determining hospital uncompensated care costs for the purposes of making Medicare UC payments to individual hospitals.
Agency: Department of Health and Human Services: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Status: Open Priority recommendation
Comments: No executive action taken as of March 2020. CMS initially agreed with GAO's June 2016 recommendation. However, in October 2018, and again in December 2019 , CMS indicated that it was reconsidering whether to offset Medicare Uncompensated Care (UC) payments by Medicaid's uncompensated care payments. CMS stated that because Medicare UC payments are distributed based on hospitals' relative (not actual) uncompensated care costs, it would not be appropriate to account for Medicaid payments that reduce hospital uncompensated care. However, in some states Medicaid payments reduce or even eliminate hospital uncompensated care costs, which can result in an inequitable distribution of payments. Because the total amount of Medicare UC payments is capped, not accounting for Medicaid payments will result in hospitals that have little or no uncompensated care costs receiving a higher proportion of Medicare UC payments than warranted, resulting in in less funding for hospitals that actually have uncompensated care costs. Implementing GAO's recommendation would ensure that Medicare UC payments are based on accurate levels of uncompensated care costs and result in CMS better targeting billions of dollars in Medicare UC payments to hospitals that do have with the most uncompensated care costs, while avoiding making payments to hospitals with little or no uncompensated care costs.
Recommendation: To help ensure the financial sustainability of the Medicare program, protect beneficiaries from unwarranted financial burden, and address potential concerns about the appropriateness of the health care provided to Part B beneficiaries, Congress should consider eliminating the incentive to prescribe more drugs or more expensive drugs than necessary to treat Medicare Part B beneficiaries at 340B hospitals.
Agency: Congress Status: Open
Comments: As of June 2020, Congress had not acted on this Matter for Congressional Consideration.
Recommendation: To improve transparency of and accountability for Medicaid non-DSH supplemental payments, Congress should consider requiring the Administrator of CMS to (1) improve state reporting of non-DSH supplemental payments, including requiring annual reporting of payments made to individual facilities and other information that the agency determines is necessary to oversee non-DSH supplemental payments; (2) clarify permissible methods for calculating non-DSH supplemental payments; and (3) require states to submit an annual independent certified audit verifying state compliance with permissible methods for calculating non-DSH supplemental payments.
Agency: Congress Status: Open
Comments: No legislation enacted as of February 2020. However, CMS has taken some administrative actions, which are underway, to improve its oversight of non-DSH supplemental payments. In November 2019, CMS issued a proposed rule that the agency said would promote state accountability, improve federal oversight, and strengthen fiscal integrity of the Medicaid program. Among other things, the proposed rule would require states to report on non-DSH supplemental payments on a facility-specific basis, as well as specify data sources, data standards, and acceptable methods for demonstrating compliance for non-DSH supplemental payment calculations. GAO plans to continue to monitor congressional action and the status of the proposed rule, as well as review a final rule, if one is issued, to determine the extent to which they improve state reporting of non-DSH supplemental payments, clarify permissible methods for calculating non-DSH supplemental payments, and require audits to verify that states use permissible methods to calculate non-DSH supplemental payments.
