Non-VA Billings of VA Employed Physicians Under Scrutiny

This TIP reminds our faculty who have partial or full time VA appointments and those faculty members' supervisors, that VA-employed faculty members must ensure their records support [or validate] they are officially off the VA "clock" when providing billable services for the College of Medicine.

Prompting our reminder is the fact that this issue is now one of the new targeted areas listed in the Office of the Inspector General for the Department of Health and Human Services (OIG/HHS) in its annual work plan for their fiscal year beginning October 1, 2004.

Medicare payments may be made to VA-employed physicians for the physician's services rendered to non-VA patients only when off the "VA clock". What is new is the OIG/HHS is now taking the position that, if a VA Employed physician bills Medicare during the time they reported they were on duty at the VA, then not only is this a violation of the VA rules (relating to the physician's employment with the VA) but IN ADDITION constitutes a false claim to Medicare.

The OIG will be using time reporting and payroll documentation from the VA, identifying services rendered while the physicians were reported as on duty at the VA hospitals and paid for duty.

We want our records to be clean!

If you have any questions about your VA assignment, please contact your Chair and/or Chief for clarification.

If you have any questions about this tip, or another compliance concern, the Office of Compliance for the College of Medicine is here for you. Please call (352) 265-8359 or e-mail Nina Tarnuzzer at nwt@ufl.edu.

If you have any questions, please contact the Office of Compliance at 265-8359.

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