Category: Liability

Three Medicare Secondary Payer (MSP) Predictions for 2021

January 14, 2021

rainbow over a highway with the year 2021 painted, illustrating predictions for Medicare Secondary Payer in 2021

We take a look at what’s in the crystal ball for Medicare Secondary Payer (MSP) short-term issues in the year ahead.

This year marks the 20th anniversary of the famous —or infamous, depending on your perspective— “Patel Memo” that formally launched CMS’s Workers’ Compensation Medicare Set-Aside review process.  It was probably safe to assume that a government program like this would still be around two decades later. However, the expansion of CMS’s authority to require mandatory reporting along with stepped up efforts to recover conditional payments by both Medicare and Medicare Advantage plans was less predictable.

I won’t hazard a guess on what Medicare Secondary Payer compliance will be like 20 years from now but will predict the outcomes of some short-term issues.

Liability MSAs

In June 2012 CMS issued an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) with ideas as to how Medicare’s interests could be considered in the settlement of future medicals in a liability case.  Ultimately, the ANPRM was withdrawn in October 2014.

Nothing further was heard from CMS management until December 2018 when it indicated proposed rules would be issued in September 2019.  Subsequent notices postponed the date to March 2021.

Prediction:  Since CMS will have new leadership and its attention has turned to vaccine distribution, I suspect we will not see proposed rules on LMSAs this year.  Even if CMS proposes regulations, they would not be implemented until after a comment period followed by revisions, which would likely stretch into 2022.

Section 111 Penalties

On February 18, 2020, CMS issued its proposed regulations specifying how and when it would impose civil money penalties if Non-Group Health Plans fail to meet Section 111 Mandatory Insurer Reporting responsibilities.  A comment period ended on April 20, 2020 (Please see CMP Comments Submitted for Tower’s comments on the proposal).

Prediction:  Since CMS completed the process of releasing the proposed rule and receiving comment and the issuance of this regulation is statutorily required by the SMART Act of 2012 prior to issuing any penalties, I expect the final rule will be issued in 2021.  Once issued, it will likely become effective within 60 days.

PAID Act

On December 11, 2020, President Trump signed into law HR 8900, Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2021, which included the provisions of the Provide Accurate Information Directly Act or PAID Act.

The PAID Act requires CMS to provide applicable plans (liability insurance, no-fault insurance and workers’ compensation laws or plans) access to Medicare beneficiary enrollment status in Medicare Advantage and Part D Prescription Drug plans through the Section 111 Mandatory Insurer Reporting process. (Please review PAID Act Becomes Law for a full explanation of the law and its implications.)

Prediction:  Per the law, CMS must provide access to Medicare Advantage and Part D plan information by December 11, 2021 (one year from the date of enactment).  As CMS must implement technical changes to the Section 111 reporting platform to provide such access, it may not be ready by that date.

Beyond these three predictions, some issues to watch in the coming year: 

  • Continued trend toward non-submit MSAs
  • More professional administration of MSAs
  • Cases affecting Medicare Advantage plan recovery rights
  • Per proposal from President-elect Biden, lowering of Medicare eligibility age to 60
  • “New” MSA reform legislation

A happy and safe new year to you and your families.

TOWER PUBLISHES WHITE PAPER THAT EXPLORES LIABILITY MSAS

September 26, 2018

“Lawyers are concerned that CMS may seek reimbursement from attorneys, injured parties and even insurers—or simply deny payment for injury-related medical care,” said Dan Anders, Tower’s Chief Compliance Officer. “Navigating through the Fog: Medicare, Future Medicals & Liability Settlements” recaps CMS’s process to date and provides advice to settling parties who are currently handling liability settlements. See more:

Tower MSA Partners Publishes White Paper to Guide Settling Parties on Medicare and Future Medical Considerations

Tower Publishes White Paper on Medicare and Future Medical Considerations in Liability Settlements

September 12, 2018

light blue car rear-ending a dark blue car

CMS has signaled its intent to expand its voluntary WCMSA review program to liability. While a liability review policy has yet to be announced, CMS has made clear it expects the burden of post-settlement medicals should not be shifted to the Medicare program. However, the measures settling parties must take to consider Medicare’s interests in these future medicals is anything but clear. Given the lack of guidance, how should liability parties address this issue so as to not run afoul of Medicare?

White Paper: Navigating Through the Fog: Medicare, Future Medicals & Liability Settlements

To provide background and guidance on Medicare Secondary Payer considerations in liability settlements–particularly future medicals–Tower has published a White Paper entitled, Navigating Through the Fog: Medicare, Future Medicals & Liability Settlements. In this paper, Tower Chief Compliance Officer, Dan Anders, Esq., provides:

  • Background on the incremental process CMS has taken in regard to a LMSA review policy,
  • Explanation of CMS authority to implement a LMSA review program, and
  • Guidance to settling parties on considering Medicare’s interests in future medicals at time of settlement and whether an LMSA is appropriate.

Liability Settlement Solutions

In addition to the White Paper, Tower provides a full suite of Liability Settlement Solutions for insurers, claimants and attorneys, both plaintiff and defendant:

  • Medicare Conditional Payment Investigation, Dispute and Resolution
  • Medicare Advantage Plan Investigation, Dispute and Resolution
  • Social Security Disability Verification/Medicare Entitlement Search
  • MSP Compliance Opinion Letter
  • Liability Medicare Set-Aside (LMSA) Report
  • Medical Cost Projection
  • Life Care Plan

Our compliance consultants are available to help alleviate the uncertainty and risks surrounding future medicals and Medicare. We will analyze your claim, recommend the best approach and implement the most effective settlement solution.

If you have any questions, please contact Dan Anders, Chief Compliance Officer, at 888.331.4941 or daniel.anders@towermsa.com.

NAMSAP Bulletin Highlights Meeting with CMS on Liability MSA Reviews

August 16, 2018

man holding transparent icons of people with stakeholder in the center

Recently, the National Alliance of Medicare Set-Aside Professionals (NAMSAP) released a Special Edition Bulletin providing insight into a meeting between CMS and NAMSAP representatives on the topic of the planned expansion of the Workers’ Compensation MSA review process to liability MSA Reviews.  NAMSAP’s April 2018 meeting was one of several with stakeholder organizations.

Your writer was one of the NAMSAP representatives who had the privilege of meeting with CMS to hear and discuss how such a Liability MSA Reviews may work.   Mr. Tom Stanley, the Co-Chair of NAMSAP’s Liability Committee provided a summary of the following meeting highlights in the bulletin:

  • CMS stated they have an 18-month timeframe (from April 2018) before it rolls out a LMSA Review program.
  • The program would be voluntary.
  • CMS has indicated that their enforcement mechanism is the denial of services.
  • CMS felt strongly that the injured party must receive something (free and clear) through settlement.
  • CMS would not review an LMSA until Settlement has been reached.
  • CMS feels a LMSA is exclusively the responsibility of the plaintiff.
  • Regarding LMSA’s, CMS made it clear that the defendant(s), and their insurers, are not a target.
  • Medicare pricing of services was discussed.
  • CMS does not feel it can mandate professional administration.
  • CMS would publish a LMSA Reference Guide.
  • Eligibility remains the same as the current WCMSA system – Medicare beneficiaries or injured parties who have a reasonable expectation of Medicare eligibility within 30 months. Per statute, Medicare’s interest must be considered in every claim.
  • A workload threshold of $250,000 is anticipated – “NO SAFE HARBOR”. This level mirrors the $25,000 workload threshold for WCMSA’s.
  • For settlements between $250,000 and $750,000 threshold, CMS approval is available and encouraged by CMS. CMS would apply “a formula” to determine the LMSA amount. Starting with the total settlement amount, CMS would subtract certain expenses and apply the discount factor to total settlement.
  • Above $750,000 level is a full commutation. A traditional MSA would be prepared and, if submitted to CMS, evaluated by CMS for adequacy.

As Mr. Stanley advised, “everything discussed in the meeting was subject to change and related to liability Medicare Set-Asides only.”  I would like to emphasize that point as well.  You should not in anyway take the above points as final, rather they are points of discussion as CMS continues to listen to stakeholders and assess the best method for protecting Medicare’s interests in post-liability settlement injury-related medical.

Importantly, CMS realizes that in protecting those interests an eventual voluntary LMSA review process must continue to provide an incentive for the parties to settle their case.   Consequently, some type of apportionment to ensure the plaintiff receives a portion of the settlement monies is expected in any final review process.

NAMSAP will to continue to dialogue with CMS and also discuss with its membership, both through a webinar and at the annual conference, the points presented by CMS.  Given the launch of a CMS LMSA review process is not expected for some time, Tower MSA Partners will shortly be releasing a white paper on best practices for addressing future medicals in liability settlements.

If you have any questions or would like to discuss the topic of LMSAs further, please contact Dan Anders, Chief Compliance Officer, at 888.331.4941 or Daniel.anders@towermsa.com.

Related:

Liability Settlement Solutions

CMS Releases Statement Regarding Stakeholder Input in Liability MSA Review Process

October 27, 2017

CMS issued the following brief statement on their website this week:

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) continues to consider expanding its voluntary Medicare Set-Aside Arrangements (MSA) review process to include liability insurance (including self-insurance) and no-fault insurance MSA amounts. CMS will work closely with the stakeholder community to identify how best to implement this potential expansion of voluntary MSA reviews. Please continue to monitor this website for updates and announcements of town hall meetings in the near future.

Notably, very little information provided other than stating CMS will work with stakeholders before formalizing the expansion of the MSA review process to liability and no-fault. Based upon this statement, we can assume CMS will not spring the expansion on us, but give impacted parties an opportunity to comment before a final policy is put in place. Tower MSA will provide updates when further information is released by CMS or town hall meetings are scheduled.

CMS MSA Review Expansion to Liability Planned for 2018

January 4, 2017

We are not even a week into 2017, but already have news to share regarding Medicare’s planned expansion of its Workers’ Compensation MSA review process to liability in 2018. In its recently released Request for Proposal for the Workers Compensation Review Contractor (WCRC), the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) includes an option allowing CMS to expand the responsibilities of the WCRC to review of Liability Medicare Set-Asides (LMSAs) and No-Fault Medicare Set-Asides (NFMSAs) effective July 1, 2018.

The CMS WCRC RFP Solicitation may be viewed here.

Background on CMS Review of MSAs

Since 2001 CMS has had in place an official voluntary review process for Worker’ Compensation Medicare Set-Asides (WCMSAs). A WCMSA, as CMS states, is a “financial agreement that allocates a portion of a workers’ compensation settlement to pay for future medical services related to the workers’ compensation injury.” The purpose of the review then is “to independently price the future Medicare-covered medical services costs related to the WC injury, illness, and/or disease and to price the future Medicare covered prescription drug expenses related to the WC injury, illness and/or disease thereby taking Medicare’s payment interests appropriately into account.”

These WCMSA reviews were initially handled by the CMS Regional Offices spread throughout the country, but eventually transitioned to a centralized WCRC in 2005 (The CMS Regional Offices must still approve the review recommendation of the WCRC before it is released to the WCMSA submitter). CMS’s RFP solicitation for the new WCRC contract indicates the contract is to be awarded by June 30, 2017 with a contract term running for five years from July 1, 2017 to June 30, 2022.

Expectations for Liability MSA Reviews

Presently, CMS allows its 10 Regional Offices to accept voluntary requests for review of LMSAs at each office’s discretion. Some Regional Offices have consistently refused to review any LMSAs while other offices agree to review based upon criteria that seemingly changes over time and bears no indication that it is indeed the official policy of CMS. It appears then that just as it did in 2005 when CMS took the responsibility away from the Regional Offices for reviewing WCMSAs, CMS is now considering centralizing the process of reviewing LMSAs with a contractor, leaving the Regional Offices to only approve of the contractor’s recommendations.

Some may recall CMS launched a prior initiative to establish a formal policy for consideration of future medicals in liability settlements when it issued an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in 2012. This initial effort was ultimately withdrawn by CMS in 2014. CMS’s new initiative began with this June 9, 2016 notice on the CMS website:

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is considering expanding its voluntary Medicare Set-Aside Arrangements (MSA) amount review process to include the review of proposed liability insurance (including self-insurance) and no-fault insurance MSA amounts. CMS plans to work closely with the stakeholder community to identify how best to implement this potential expansion. CMS will provide future announcements of the proposal and expects to schedule town hall meetings later this year. Please continue to monitor CMS.gov for additional updates.

No town hall meetings were scheduled in 2016, however, based upon this RFP indicating LMSA reviews will not begin until at least July 1, 2018, CMS has given itself 18 months to develop and implement a formal LMSA review policy. In terms of how many liability settlements such a review process would impact, CMS seems uncertain. A Statement of Work attached to the RFP indicates “reviews could represent as much as 11,000 additional cases (based on all FY2015 NGHP demands), or as little as 800 additional cases annually, depending upon industry response.”

Tower MSA Takeaways

Over the past 15 years, starting with the formalized review of WCMSAs, continuing with the implementation of Section 111 Mandatory Insurer Reporting and recent stepped up efforts at denying injury-related medical care and recovery of conditional payments for medical care related to workers’ compensation, liability and no-fault claims, CMS has expanded its enforcement under the Medicare Secondary Payer Act. It is not surprising then that CMS’s next objective is formalizing a voluntary review process for LMSAs.

It has been our experience that when CMS does implement new policy and procedures it does take a deliberative approach evidenced by the at least 18-month timeframe signaled with this RFP to expand the MSA review process to liability and no-fault. Our expectation then is over the next 18 months or longer, CMS will provide additional announcements concerning the rules and procedures around expansion of the review process.

Tower MSA will be involved in these discussions and will keep you abreast of relevant developments. In the interim, there remain important obligations of parties to liability settlements and no-fault claims under the Medicare Secondary Payer Act. Rest assured that you can rely upon Tower MSA’s team of MSP compliance experts for consultation and expert guidance in liability and no-fault matters.

If you have any questions, please contact Tower MSA Partners, Chief Compliance Officer, Dan Anders, at (847) 946-2880 or daniel.anders@towermsa.com

CMS Technical Alert Confirms $750 Threshold for Liability, WC and No-Fault TPOC Reporting

December 13, 2016

In a 12/12/2016 Technical Alert, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) confirmed their prior policy announcements concerning the implementation of a $750 threshold for the reporting of Total Payment Obligation to the Claimant (TPOC) through the Section 111 Mandatory Insurer Reporting process. The $750 threshold for TPOC reporting in WC and No-Fault claims became effective 10/1/2016 and will become effective for liability claims effective 1/1/2017.

The mandatory reporting threshold requirements are now as follows:

Liability Insurance:
The mandatory reporting threshold for liability insurance (including self-insurance) Total Payment Obligation to the Claimant (TPOC) Amounts dated January 1, 2017 or after is changing from $1000 to $750. If the most recent TPOC Date is on or after January 1, 2017, and the cumulative TPOC Amount is greater than $750, the TPOC(s) must be reported.

Note, the liability threshold only applies to physical trauma-based liability insurance TPOC amounts. It is not applicable to TPOC amounts for alleged ingestion, implantation or exposure.

No-Fault Insurance:
The mandatory reporting threshold for no-fault insurance TPOC Amounts dated October 1, 2016 or after changed from $0 to $750. If the most recent TPOC Date is on or after October 1, 2016, and the cumulative TPOC Amount is greater than $750, the TPOC(s) must be reported.

Workers’ Compensation:
The mandatory reporting threshold for workers’ compensation TPOC Amounts dated October 1, 2016 or after changed from $300 to $750. If the most recent TPOC Date is on or after October 1, 2016, and the cumulative TPOC Amount is greater than $750, the TPOC(s) must be reported

CMS also announced that as of 1/1/2017 reporting of cumulative TPOC Amounts at or below the above defined reporting thresholds will be accepted, but are not required. In other words, submitting a TPOC amount below the mandatory reporting thresholds will no longer generate an error code by CMS.

The entire content of the official Alert from CMS can be found here.

If you have any questions regarding this Alert please contact Tower MSA Partners’ Chief Compliance Officer, Dan Anders, at Daniel.anders@towermsa.com or (847) 946-2880.

CMS to ‘Consider’ Expanding Its Review Process to Include Liability MSAs

June 10, 2016

In a News Alert released Thursday, June 9, 2016, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced is considering expanding its voluntary Medicare Set-Aside Arrangements (MSA) amount review process to include the review of proposed liability insurance (including self-insurance) and no-fault insurance MSA amounts. CMS plans to work closely with the stakeholder community to identify how best to implement this potential expansion. CMS will provide future announcements of the proposal and expects to schedule town hall  meetings later this year.

The link to the alert can be found in the ‘What’s New’ section of the Medicare Coordination of Benefits and Recovery Overview page at CMS.gov.

https://www.cms.gov/Medicare/Coordination-of-Benefits-and-Recovery/Coordination-of-Benefits-and-Recovery-Overview/Whats-New/Whats-New.html

Background

Signed in June, 1980,

42 U.S.C. §1395y(2)(A)) prohibits Medicare from making payment, except as provided in (B), for any item or service, to the extent that payment has been made, or can reasonably be expected to be made, under a workers’ compensation law or plan, an automobile or liability insurance policy or plan (including a self-insured plan), or no fault insurance.

42 U.S.C. §1395y(2)(B) – The Secretary may make payment under this title with respect to an item or service if a primary plan as described in Subparagraph (A) has not made or cannot reasonably be expected to make payment with respect to such item or service promptly. Any such payment shall be conditioned on reimbursement to the appropriate Trust Fund in accordance with the succeeding provisions of this subsection.

While statutory provisions included Liability cases, there were no LMSA guidelines .  As a result, actions taken to comply with the MSPA statutes in a Liability case ranged from extremely conservative to strategies that earned the LMSA environment its characterization as ‘The Wild West’.  Those who took the conservative route followed the CMS guidelines established for WCMSA.  Other strategies ranged from making the LMSA decisions based on the severity of the injury in a liability case to doing nothing.

CMS’s Review of LMSAs

With no established thresholds for CMS submission and review, those who took the conservative path followed WCMSA guidance and attempted to submit.  While certain of the CMS offices would review an LMSA, acceptance was random.  Eventually, with greater acceptance and use of the WCMSA portal, CMS began to reject LMSAs.  Submitters could make the effort to submit and obtain a letter of rejection.

While not a ‘safe harbor’, the attempt to submit was at least evidence of efforts to follow the guidelines.

CMS’s first attempt to address LMSAs

In June 2012, CMS began the process by releasing an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (CMS-6047-ANPRM) to solicit public comment on how to implement an MSP process for liability settlements.  The ANPRM received many public comments.

On August 1, 2013, CMS sent the NPRM to the OMB for their approval.  The NPRM was never made public because the OMB did not approve it, and on 10/8/2014, this last attempt at  ‘guidance’ surrounding Liability MSAs faded into the sunset whenCMS withdrew the NPRM.   The reasons for the OMB’s rejection of the proposal were never made public.

Where are we now?

With the Liability TPOC mandatory reporting threshold of $1,000 beginning January 1, 2015 (and the voluntary threshold of $300), the BCRC now has access to more data on Liability claims than ever.  And with the announcement of the CRC (Commercial Repayment Center) in October, 2015, and its singular focus on payer recovery, the BCRC has greater resources to pursue recovery with Liability settlements.  With this combination of information and resources, it would follow that the absence of documented evidence to show that Medicare’s interests have been considered when settling a liability claim might lead to financial exposure for all stakeholders in the process…. the perfect time to introduce ‘guidance’ for the LMSA.

Tower will continue to monitor associated news on this topic and will actively participate in the TownHall Meetings regarding this topic.

CMS Proposes Regulations Addressing Future Medicals in Liability Settlements

May 23, 2012

While text of the proposed rules have not yet been released, it appears that CMS has developed regulations that will ‘advise’ that parties must determine whether an allocation for future medicals exists within a gross liability award, and then document those efforts in a pre-defined format.  If this is the case, this would be the first CMS guidance on future medicals within liability settlements since the CMS memo of September, 2010.  If our suspicsions are correct, this represents a significant development in the MSP world.

Guidance as to how parties should address future medicals in liability settlements has been virtually non-existent until now. The first step, in play now,  inlcudes internal vetting within the Executive Branch of the federal government.  Following Executive Branch approval, CMS will release the proposed regulations to the settlement community for comment.  Each comment will be considered, and if appropriate, will lead to modifications and a new comment period prior to CMS enacting the regulation.

When available, a detailed analysis of the proposed regulation will be available on our website.

Medicare Set-Asides and Third-Party Liability

November 11, 2011

The following legal judgements relate to Medicare Set-Asides and Third-Party Liability

Hinsinger v. Showboat Atlantic City, 420 N.J. Super. 15, 18 A.3d 229 (N.J. Super Ct. Law Div. 2011)

In Hinsinger, the New Jersey court applied the same standard to Medicare set asides created with money obtained from third-party liability claims as it does with money obtained from workers’ compensation claims.  This rationale is premised based on the long understood policy of protecting Medicare’s interests from primary payers.

Based on a personal injury action, the parties to this case reached a settlement agreement in the amount of $600,000.00.  The claimant had become a Medicare beneficiary in 2009.  In order to protect Medicare’s interests, $180,600.00 of the $600,000.00 was allocated to a Medicare set aside account.  After this settlement was reached, the claimant’s attorney filed a petition to recover his attorney fees from the Medicare set aside account.  The trial court held that the attorney could deduct his fees from the Medicare set aside account.

The first issue was whether the same standard should apply to MSA’s created with money from third-party liability cases and MSA’s created from workers’ compensation claims.  The court held that the attorney was able to deduct his fees from the Medicare Set Aside Trust by applying the same standard as a workers’ compensation Medicare Set Aside

The second issue was whether the attorney’s fees could be deducted from the Medicare set aside account.  The court explained that the amount of money deducted from the Medicare set aside account for procurement costs was computed using the ration of the procurement costs to the total settlement or judgment.  The court in this case stated that 42 C.F.R. § 411.37 (2008) was applicable and since the ratio of procurement costs to the total settlement of $600,000.00 was 32.778%, that ratio was applied to the amount of money allocated for the procurement costs.

The court went as far as stating that “the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services has stated multiple times that the same statutes that necessitate or otherwise apply to Medicare set asides in workers’ compensation cases apply to third-party liability situations.” Once the court determined that parties to a third-party liability action needed to consider Medicare’s interest, the court then applied the workers’ compensation
standard to arrive at the their conclusion that attorneys’ fees incurred to procure a settlement may be deducted from the money allocated to a Medicare set aside.

Zaleppa v. Siewell, 208, 9 A.3d 632 (Pa. Super. 2010)

In Zaleppa v. Siewell, a 69 year old woman was injured in a car accident and
subsequently obtained a judgment in the amount of $15,000.00 against the driver
who hit her vehicle.  The jury determined that $5,000.00 of the $15,000.00 would be allocated to provide for future medical expenses associated with her injuries.  Defendant filed a motion requesting the court to name Medicare as the payee of the $5,000.00 to ensure that Medicare would recover conditional payments. The trial court denied Defendant’s requested relief.

On appeal, the court noted that there was no evidence presented to show that Medicare had even paid any conditional payments to the Plaintiff and that the Medicare Secondary Payer Act bars private entities from essentially asserting the interests of the government by insisting that Medicare be named as payee on the settlement check.

 

Schexnayder v. Scottsdale Insurance Co., 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 83687 (W.D.la. July 28, 2011)

This case involved both a workers’ compensation claim as well as a third-party liability claim.

In Schexnayder, plaintiff was injured in an automobile accident while working.  Settlement was reached in both the plaintiff’s workers’ compensation action and liability action.  The liability settlement provided a Medicare set aside allocation in order to protect Medicare’s interest under the Medicare Secondary Payer Act.  CMS approval was
sought but was however, advised that the proposed Medicare set aside would not
be reviewed or approved in the not too distant future.  The reason for that response from CMS was neither due to the fact that the plaintiff was not a Medicare beneficiary nor
within 30 months of qualifying for Medicare.

The court stated that Medicare does not currently require or approve Medicare set asides when personal injury lawsuits settle, nor do they have a current policy or procedure in effect regarding the adequacy of future medical expenses set aside in liability cases.

The court held that the amount of money allocated to future medical expenses (as evidenced in the settlement agreement), reasonably accounted for Medicare’s interest.

Related: Liability Settlement Solutions