The New Tax Form 990H: Develop a Compliant Charity Care Policy

AUDIO CONFERENCE ON CD OR AUDIO ON-DEMAND

Sponsored by:

presented on April 23, 2009

Uncompensated care resulted in more than 50% of non-profit facilities' expenses, according to the recently released IRS Community Benefit Report. How that significant expense is accounted for on the books can go a long way toward affirming—or jeopardizing—your hospital's tax-exempt status.

Discover methods to ensure your charity care processes are Medicare and IRS compliant.

Listen to HCPro for the 90-minute audio conference, The New Tax Form 990H: Develop a Compliant Charity Care Policy. Tax attorney Wendy Pearson, J.D., LL.M (Bennett, Bigelow & Leedom), and patient financial services director Alex McFadden (West Virginia University Hospitals), discuss specific policies to ensure your hospital is maintaining enough of a community benefit through its charity care.

You'll learn strategies to differentiate between a charity care expense and a bad debt expense, and tips to educate patient access staff on proper documentation of the two. A case study of how the West Virginia Hospital system developed accurate representation of reporting charity care will help you prepare to complete Form 990H in a compliant manner when it comes time to file your 2009 tax return.

TAKE A LOOK AT THE AGENDA:

• The 990H form
• History of the form – how we got here
• What's in it?
• What's the impetus for change?
• Rollout date for reporting
• The principle focus of schedule H
• Customer transparency
• Written versus published
• Charity care policies
• WVU Hospital case study
• How does your policy measure up to the standards and what are the benchmarks?
• Policies and processes with accurate representation of reporting
• Tools to determine charity care versus bad debt
• What constitutes bad debt
• Are you offering enough of a benefit to the community with charity care?
• Information gathering for 2009
• Do you use your federal property guidelines?
• What reporting systems do you use to gather information?
• How does your patient access staff educate your patients?
• Q&A session

BONUS TOOLS

In addition to the expertise and advice presented during this audio conference, you'll also receive a slide presentation of the program materials and:

• Charity Care Policy
• 990 H form
• Approval / denial letters

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

At the conclusion of this audio conference, you will be able to:

• Determine if your charity care process meets Medicare compliance criteria
• Distinguish between charity care and bad debt
• Identify how to prepare for new charity care reporting requirements
• Identify the IRS requirements in Form 990H

MEET THE SPEAKERS

Alex McFadden, director of Patient Financial Services and Patient Access, West Virginia University (WVU) Hospitals (Morgantown, WV). McFadden possesses a vast background in the healthcare industry, with expertise in decision support and cost accounting, annual budget preparation, cost reporting, patient access, and patient financial services. Under his leadership in his current role at WVU Hospitals, his access department has seen a decrease in Patient Financial Services Days in Accounts Receivable from 140 to a record low of 53.

Wendy Pearson, JD, LL.M, tax attorney, Bennett, Bigelow & Leedom, P.S. (Seattle, WA). Pearson's practice emphasizes federal tax compliance, and during her 20-year career, she has advised tax-exempt and for-profit entities, Indian Tribal Governments, and individuals on matters involving tax compliance. Pearson has represented the respective interests of both the IRS (as a former IRS District Counsel Attorney) as well as taxpayers, in administrative proceedings and judicial proceedings before the U.S. Tax Court and numerous U.S. District courts.

WHO SHOULD LISTEN?

Hospital professionals, including the following titles and job descriptions:

• Patient financial service director
• Revenue cycle manager
• CFO
• Patient access manager
• Case management
• Biller
• Tax accountant
• In-house counsel

**This program not intended for the physician billing department, as it will not cover physician professional fees.

AUDIO ON-DEMAND

In addition to the regular purchase options for HCPro audio conferences, we are pleased to offer another option, audio on-demand. Audio on-demand allows you to download the program and play it back at your convenience through your computer or MP3 player. Purchase a CD or audio on-demand of the program and listen when you can. It's also a perfect training tool for new staff or as a refresher for veteran staff.

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