Indian Health Service: Capping Payment Rates for Nonhospital Services Could Save Millions of Dollars for Contract Health Services
Released: 2013-04-11T00:00:00

Letter

Background

IHS oversees the CHS program through 12 area offices. The federally and tribally operated facilities in each of these areas use CHS program funds to purchase health care services from external hospitals, physicians, and other providers. Medicare-participating hospitals are required to accept CHS program patients at rates no higher than the rates paid by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS) Medicare program, while federal and tribal CHS programs pay physicians and other nonhospital providers at either their billed charges or at reduced rates an IHS area office or tribal CHS program negotiates with them. Other federal health care programs—administered by the Department of Defense (DOD) and the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)—have adopted Medicare rates as the basis for their standard payment rate for both hospital and nonhospital services.

CHS Program Organization

IHS manages the CHS program through a decentralized system of 12 area offices, which oversee individual CHS programs in 35 states where many American Indian and Alaska Native communities are located. (See fig. 1 for a map of the counties IHS designates as CHSDAs. Residence in these counties is generally a requirement for obtaining contract health services.) About 46 percent of CHS program funds are distributed by IHS to federal CHS programs, and the other 54 percent to tribal CHS programs. Tribal CHS programs must meet the same statutory and regulatory requirements as federal CHS programs, but they are not generally subject to the same policies, procedures, and reporting requirements established for federal CHS programs.

Funds permitting, federal and tribal facilities use CHS program funds to pay for eligible patients to receive services from external providers if the services are not available at IHS-funded facilities. The services purchased include hospital, specialty physician, outpatient, laboratory, dental, radiology, pharmacy, and transportation services. Patients must meet certain requirements to have their services paid for by the CHS program. For example, patients must be members of federally recognized tribes and live in specific areas. If these requirements are met, CHS program committees at each federal or tribal facility evaluate the medical necessity of each patient case and assign it a priority level. Facilities first pay for the highest priority services. If there are other health care resources available to the patient, such as Medicare, Medicaid, or private health insurance, these resources must first be used to pay for services before the CHS program covers any remaining costs because the CHS program is generally the payer of last resort.once the service has been approved and the care provided, providers obtain payment for CHS program services by sending their claims to IHS’s fiscal intermediary, BlueCross BlueShield of New Mexico (BCBSNM). BCBSNM processes claims for all of the federal CHS programs. The tribal CHS programs process their own claims or contract with a fiscal intermediary of their choosing; a small number of tribal programs contract with BCBSNM.

CHS Program Payment Rates

The rate that a CHS program pays a provider is determined by several factors, including whether the provider is a hospital subject to MLR reimbursement or the provider has negotiated reduced payment rates with IHS or the tribe. (See fig. 2.) CHS program payments for hospital services—inpatient and outpatient services provided in Medicare- participating hospitals—are subject to the MLR requirement. IHS generally calculates the MLR using the same methodology that Medicare uses to pay its claims, so the amount the CHS program pays for a service generally equals the amount that Medicare would pay the hospital for that same service. CHS program payments to providers for nonhospital services—including services provided by hospital- and office-based physicians—are not subject to the MLR requirement. Each CHS program pays these providers at their billed charges unless the IHS area office has negotiated with the provider for a reduced rate. Each IHS area office can negotiate contracts with the providers that serve the CHS programs in its geographic area. Tribally operated facilities are independent and may negotiate their own contracts with providers. However, IHS officials said that when they negotiate with providers, they may ask those providers to honor the negotiated rates when they interact with tribal CHS programs.

In 1986, IHS issued a policy advising area offices to negotiate rates no In discussing the need for the policy, IHS higher than Medicare rates.noted that paying providers for CHS program services at billed charges resulted in a depletion of funding that often required the postponement of needed care for American Indians and Alaska Natives. The agency also noted that IHS should not pay more than other federal agencies for the same services. The agency recommended that area offices identify and prioritize high-volume providers with whom to negotiate lower rates. In addition, the agency indicated that contracts negotiated with providers for payments at rates higher than those paid by Medicare, such as a discount off billed charges or a percentage above Medicare rates, would be approved by IHS on a case-by-case basis. Further, the agency stated that CHS programs should only use providers that do not have a contract with the CHS program in two situations: if a patient needs emergency care and if the patient’s health requires that the services be rendered by a noncontract provider. However, IHS has since stated it has not been possible to negotiate contracts with each of the providers that the CHS program uses because of limitations in area office contracting staff and some providers not being willing to enter into a contract.

Federal CHS Program Payments for Services Provided in 2010

For services provided in calendar year 2010, IHS’s federal CHS programs paid $262.8 million to 6,113 providers for services for 66,750 patients. Of these payments, federal CHS programs paid $104.0 million (about 40 percent of total payments) for hospital services where the CHS program was the primary payer and about $114.7 million (about 44 percent of total payments) for nonhospital services where the CHS program was the primary payer. Of these payments for nonhospital services, the federal CHS programs paid $62.5 million (about 55 percent) for hospital- and office-based physician services. (See fig. 3.)

CMS uses Medicare payment methodologies that take many factors, such as the type and location of service delivery, into account when calculating hospital and physician payments for a given service. CMS periodically reassesses the specific Medicare payment rates to adjust for increases in the cost of delivering care. The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) has stated that the goal of Medicare payment policy should be to keep payment rates low enough to ensure efficient use of taxpayer funds, but high enough to ensure that patient access to care is not negatively affected by reduced provider participation.$549 billion in 2011 for care provided to Medicare’s almost 49 million beneficiaries.

In fiscal year 2010, DOD offered health care to over 9.5 million eligible beneficiaries through TRICARE. Under TRICARE, eligible beneficiaries may obtain care either from military hospitals and clinics, referred to as military treatment facilities, or from civilian providers. with Medicare, which VA described as the federal government’s standard for purchasing care from private-sector providers.

We and MedPAC have reported that Medicare beneficiaries have generally experienced few problems accessing physician services, although access problems may exist in certain situations. For example, in 2009, we reported that the percentage of Medicare beneficiaries who reported major difficulties accessing specialty care was the same for those living in urban areas and in rural areas in 2008—2.1 percent. We also noted that the number of physicians billing Medicare for services had increased between 2000 and 2007, suggesting that more physicians were generally willing to accept Medicare patients. Some studies have found that access-to-care problems may exist for certain types of Medicare beneficiaries, such as those in fair or poor health, racial minorities, or those living in the most remote areas. However, studies have also suggested that factors other than payment rates, such as physician capacity to accept patients and travel time, are important influences on patient access to care. With respect to DOD’s TRICARE program, we have reported that reimbursement rates and provider shortages in some locations have hindered access to care. Additional studies by DOD have cited reimbursement rates as the primary reason civilian providers may be unwilling to accept TRICARE beneficiaries as patients.

DOD and VA have each made modifications to their payment methodologies in an attempt to address concerns about access to care. For example, both agencies pay higher rates in Alaska because of concerns that providers would not accept their beneficiaries at Medicare rates. In contrast to the Medicare rates it pays elsewhere, in Alaska, VA and DOD pay providers using separate payment methodologies. In prior reviews of DOD’s program, we have noted that there is little evidence these increased payments improved patient access to care. We noted that increased payment rates do little to address more systemic causes of limited access, such as scarcity of physicians and patient transportation difficulties.

We have also noted that the potential for payment rate changes to affect patient access to care points to the need to monitor beneficiary access. This type of monitoring is conducted by some federal agencies paying providers at Medicare rates. For example, as part of its monitoring, CMS conducts annual surveys of Medicare beneficiaries to assess their satisfaction with care and their ability to access health care. Additionally, in fiscal year 2004, in response to concerns about certain TRICARE beneficiaries’ access to care from civilian providers, the Congress directed DOD to monitor access through a survey of civilian providers.

As these concerns continued, DOD was further directed in fiscal year 2008 to conduct annual surveys of both beneficiaries and civilian providers to determine the adequacy of access to health care and mental health care providers for certain beneficiaries.

IHS’s Federal CHS Program Primarily Paid Physicians at Their Billed Charges, Which Were Significantly Higher than What Medicare and Private Insurers Would Have Paid

More than 80 percent of IHS’s federal CHS program payments to physicians for services provided in 2010 were paid to noncontracted physicians at billed charges, rather than to contracted physicians at negotiated, reduced rates. IHS’s federal CHS program payments to these physicians were significantly higher than what we estimate Medicare and private insurers would have paid for these same services.

IHS’s Federal CHS Program Paid More than 80 Percent of Total Payments to Physicians at Billed Charges for Services Provided in 2010

More than 80 percent of IHS’s federal CHS program payments to physicians for services provided in 2010 were paid to noncontracted physicians at billed charges, rather than to contracted physicians at negotiated, reduced rates. With the exception of uninsured patients, who are expected to pay providers at billed charges, other public and private payers typically pay providers at lower rates.$62.5 million that federal CHS programs paid physicians, they paid about $50.5 million (about 81 percent) to noncontracted physicians at billed charges and about $12.1 million (19 percent) to contracted physicians at negotiated, reduced rates. IHS’s federal CHS program payments to other However, of the types of nonhospital providers for services provided in 2010 showed similar trends. Specifically, the federal CHS programs paid $40.3 million out of a total of $52.1 million (77 percent) to other noncontracted nonhospital providers at billed charges and about $11.8 million (about 23 percent) to other contracted nonhospital providers at negotiated, reduced rates. (See fig. 4.)

While IHS’s policy states that CHS programs should purchase services from contracted providers in most situations, a significant majority of physicians paid by federal CHS programs for services provided in 2010 did not have contracts. Specifically, of the 3,531 total physicians paid by federal CHS programs for services provided in 2010, 3,085 were noncontracted physicians paid at billed charges and 516 were contracted physicians paid at negotiated, reduced rates for at least some of their services. Although IHS’s policy also states that contracting efforts should be focused on high-volume providers, the majority of these high- volume providers did not have contracts. For example, on the basis of the number of services provided, about 78 percent of the top 25 percent of physicians did not have contracts, nor did about 74 percent of the top 5 percent of physicians. In addition, an examination of the data by area office showed that noncontracted physicians constituted the majority of paid physicians in all IHS areas. Specifically, for each of the 10 IHS areas with federally operated CHS programs, noncontracted physicians constituted more than two-thirds of all physicians paid for services provided in 2010. (See fig. 5.) For all other nonhospital providers, the numbers of contracted and noncontracted providers showed similar trends. Specifically, of the 3,590 other nonhospital providers paid for services provided in 2010, 3,145 other nonhospital providers did not have contracts and were paid at billed charges and 507 other nonhospital providers did have contracts and were paid at negotiated, reduced rates for at least some of their services.

For those physicians whom IHS’s federal CHS programs paid under contracts for reduced rates, the programs achieved significant savings relative to the physicians’ billed charges. Specifically, the federal CHS programs paid about $12.1 million for these services, which represented an estimated $16.7 million (58 percent) in savings, relative to the physicians’ billed charges. The percentage of savings was fairly consistent across the IHS area offices. The savings attributed to physician contracts ranged from 50.4 percent in the Aberdeen and Albuquerque Areas to 69.1 percent in the Phoenix Area. (See table 1.) IHS’s federal CHS programs’ savings from contracts with other nonhospital providers showed similar trends, achieving estimated savings of 68 percent, or $25.3 million, relative to billed charges.

IHS’s federal CHS program payments to physicians for services provided in 2010 were higher than what we estimate Medicare and private insurers would have paid for these same services. These higher payments resulted from payments federal CHS programs made to noncontracted physicians at billed charges, as the CHS program generally paid contracted physicians at rates similar to Medicare.

IHS’s federal CHS programs paid, in total, two times what we estimate Medicare would have paid for the same physician services provided in 2010. Specifically, of the $62.5 million in total payments for services provided in 2010, the federal CHS programs could have saved an estimated $31.7 million if they paid physicians what Medicare would have paid for the same services. The federal CHS programs could have used these savings to pay for more than double the number of physician services they provided in 2010—approximately 253,000 additional physician services (based on an average Medicare rate of $125 per IHS physician service). Further, savings for the overall CHS program may be even higher, as this analysis does not include payments for other types of nonhospital services paid by the federal CHS programs, as well as payments by tribally operated CHS programs, which receive over half of annual CHS program funding and have also been found to pay for nonhospital services above the Medicare rates. For example, a 2009 OIG report found that there was no difference between federally and tribally operated CHS programs in terms of the percentages of nonhospital claims paid above Medicare rates. It estimated that federally and tribally operated CHS programs could have saved almost half of total spending on nonhospital services if nonhospital payments were capped at Medicare rates. This suggests that both federally and tribally operated CHS programs are likely to achieve significant savings if they paid physicians and other nonhospital providers according to what Medicare would have paid for the same services. The potential for savings is particularly significant in light of the CHS program’s inability to pay for all needed services.

IHS’s federal CHS programs paid physicians at rates that were higher than Medicare rates because they primarily paid physicians at their billed charges. Services provided by noncontracted physicians accounted for approximately $30.5 million of the $31.7 million in estimated total savings (96 percent) for the federal CHS programs. Specifically, the federal CHS programs paid noncontracted physicians a total of about $50.5 million at billed charges, which was two and a half times what we estimate Medicare would have paid for the same services (about $20 million). (See fig. 6.)

Most, but not all, payments to contracted physicians were similar to what Medicare would have paid. Federal CHS programs paid contracted physicians about $12.1 million for services provided in 2010 and these payments to contracted physicians accounted for approximately $1.2 million of the $31.7 million in estimated total savings (about 4 percent). The federal CHS programs’ contracts with physicians were sometimes for negotiated rates that exceeded what Medicare would have paid. Specifically, slightly over one-third of total payments to contracted physicians were higher than what we estimate Medicare would have paid. However, most payments to contracted physicians were equal to or lower than what we estimate Medicare would have paid.

Most Physicians We Interviewed Said CHS Program Payments Were a Small Part of Their Total Payments and Cited Both Advantages and Concerns about Capping Payments at Medicare Rates

Most of the 10 physicians whom we interviewed indicated that the CHS program represented a small portion of their practice and was not a significant source of revenue. The physicians identified advantages of capping CHS program payments for nonhospital services, including physician services, at Medicare rates, but also expressed concerns about the effect of such a cap on their finances.

Physicians We Interviewed Said CHS Program Payments Were Generally Less than 10 Percent of Their Total Practice Payments and Were Often at Medicare Rates

According to most of the 10 physicians whom we interviewed, the CHS program represented a small portion of their practice. All of the physicians we interviewed were among federal CHS programs’ top 25 percent of physicians in terms of their volume of paid services in 2010. However, 8 of the 10 physicians said total CHS program payments constituted 10 percent or less of the total payments they received from all payers. The remaining 2 physicians said the CHS program accounted for a larger portion of their total payments. For example, payments from the CHS program constituted 39 percent of total payments for 1 physician who was located on a reservation. Payments from the CHS program to the other physician, who was located near three reservations, constituted 15 to 20 percent of total payments.

The 10 physicians we interviewed were divided between those who were paid above Medicare rates by the CHS program and those who were paid at or below Medicare rates. According to IHS 2010 claims data, federal CHS programs paid the 10 physicians we interviewed a total of about $990,000. Four of the 10 physicians had a contract with the CHS program and were paid at or below Medicare rates.with IHS saved the program about 60 percent relative to the physicians’ billed charges, which is comparable to the federal CHS programs’ percentage of estimated savings across all physician contracts in that year. The other 6 physicians were paid by the CHS program at billed charges that were higher than Medicare rates. For example, 1 physician said he was paid at 133 percent of Medicare rates and another said he was paid at 250 percent of Medicare rates.

In terms of other payers, most physicians we interviewed said they received the majority of their payments from Medicare and Medicaid. Eight of the 10 physicians said their payments from Medicare and Medicaid were close to 50 percent or more of their total payments, private insurance and self-pay patients constituting most of their remaining payments. Two of these 8 said that, respectively, they received 50 percent and 75 percent of their total payments from Medicare alone. The remaining 2 of the 10 physicians said they received the majority of their total payments from private insurance or self-pay patients. All 10 physicians reported that they are accepting new patients from all payers, including Medicare and the CHS program.

Medicaid physician fees vary by state, but are generally less than the fees paid by Medicare in that state. See Stephen Zuckerman, Aimee Williams, and Karen Stockley, “Trends in Medicaid Physician Fees, 2003-2008,” Health Affairs, vol. 28, no. 3 (2009).

Physicians We Interviewed Identified Both Advantages and Concerns with Capping CHS Program Payments at Medicare Rates

The 10 physicians we interviewed identified advantages of capping CHS program payments for nonhospital services, including physician services, at Medicare rates, but also expressed concerns about the effect of such a cap on their finances. The 4 physicians who were already getting paid at or below Medicare rates, as well as 4 of the other physicians who were getting paid at higher billed charges, said such a cap would have little or no effect on their practices. Two of these physicians noted that there would be little effect because the CHS program is a small percentage of their practice. The remaining 2 of these 10 physicians, who were paid at higher billed charges, cited concerns that a cap could affect their finances or patient access to care.

Six of the physicians we interviewed, three of whom were paid at or below Medicare rates, said they would support a cap on CHS program payments for nonhospital services, including physician services, at Medicare rates and provided various rationales for their support. For example, one physician said that capping CHS program payments for nonhospital services at the Medicare rates is a “good idea” that would save IHS money. This physician expected that capping the CHS program payments would allow him to substantially decrease the time his practice spends negotiating with different CHS programs, especially the numerous tribal CHS programs in his area. Others noted that Medicare rates are nearly universally accepted by physicians and, therefore, physicians are familiar with the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule. One of these physicians added that paying physicians according to Medicare rates would allow all physicians to receive payment under a consistent methodology. Another physician said he negotiated a contract with the CHS program for lower, Medicare rates because, in his opinion, IHS should not be paying physicians at billed charges that are higher than the rates paid by Medicare. A physician paid by the CHS program at billed charges higher than Medicare agreed that Medicare rates were appropriate. He said that he is already receiving Medicare rates for many patients because the majority of his work is done in a hospital and many patients needing his services are older. Further, one physician noted that such a cap could increase his practice’s CHS program payment, as he currently receives Medicare Physician Fee Schedule rates from the CHS program, but a cap on payments for nonhospital services could allow him to be paid at the higher cost-based reimbursement that he receives from Medicare.

Four of the physicians we interviewed, three of whom said they were paid by the CHS program at billed charges higher than Medicare, did not support such a cap and expressed varying concerns about its effect on their finances and patient access to care. Specifically, two physicians noted that if their CHS program payments were capped at Medicare rates and Medicare rates were reduced in the future, this could have a significant adverse financial effect on their practices. One physician said that reducing his rates to Medicare levels would not allow him to cover his practice’s costs, as his billed charges are 133 percent of Medicare rates and CHS program payments represented 39 percent of his practice. Two physicians also indicated that certain specialists might be particularly affected by a cap at Medicare rates. For example, one physician noted that there have been significant reductions in Medicare rates for certain cardiology services in recent years. The other physician said that an orthopedic practice in his area that had previously contracted with a CHS program decided to stop accepting tribal patients at Medicare rates. Two physicians also noted they use the higher payments from the CHS program and private payers to compensate for their payments from Medicare and Medicaid, which they indicated do not cover their costs for providing care.

Three physicians who did not support a cap on CHS program payments for nonhospital services, including physician services, at Medicare rates said they would support a rate cap set at a higher payment rate than Medicare but lower than billed charges. Two of the physicians suggested a cap set at a percent of their billed charges, while the third suggested a cap set at 125 to 133 percent of the Medicare rates.

The Medicare Physician Fee Schedule is updated annually under the sustainable growth rate system, with the intent of limiting the total growth in Medicare spending for physician services over time. Because of rapid growth in Medicare spending for physician services, the sustainable growth rate has called for fee reductions since 2002. However, the Congress has averted such fee reductions for 2003 through 2013. Under current law, Medicare’s fees to physicians are scheduled to be reduced by about 27 percent in 2014. See 42 U.S.C. § 1395w-4(d).

When we asked physicians if they had any concerns unrelated to CHS program payment rates but that have had a financial effect on their practice, all 10 cited challenges processing their CHS program payment requests or receiving timely claims payment. The physicians said, for example, that to receive payment from the CHS program they spent a disproportionate amount of time, relative to other payers, gathering paperwork in support of payment requests or monitoring the progress of those requests. Specifically, 1 physician indicated that she received the same rates as Medicare for the CHS program, but her claims processing costs for the CHS program were significantly higher than for Medicare. Physicians’ concerns about claims administration echoed those that we heard from physicians as part of a 2011 report examining the CHS program.

Most Hospitals We Interviewed Indicated Little Negative Effect from the Current MLR Requirement, as They Already Had CHS Program Contracts to Be Paid at Medicare Rates

Officials from most of the nine hospitals that we interviewed indicated that the MLR requirement has had little or no financial effect on their hospital. They said the CHS program accounted for a small percentage of their total payments. Officials from eight of the nine hospitals said the program accounted for between 0.02 and 10 percent of their total payments;accounted for about 14 percent of its total payments. officials from the other hospital said the CHS program Officials from seven of the nine hospitals noted that the CHS program already paid them at Medicare rates prior to implementation of the MLR requirement. Of these seven, officials from five hospitals said the implementation of the MLR requirement has had little or no financial effect on their hospital. Officials from the other two of the seven hospitals did not experience a change in rates from the implementation of MLR, but they had concerns with Medicare payment rates in general, saying they do not cover their hospital’s costs of providing patient services. For each of the two hospitals, officials said that the Medicare program accounted for a larger portion of their payments than the CHS program—29 percent and 28 percent, while the CHS program accounted for 0.02 percent.

Officials from two hospitals indicated that the MLR requirement reduced their payment rate. Officials from one of these hospitals said that, prior to the implementation of the MLR requirement, the hospital had a contract to be paid by the CHS program at 90 percent of its billed charges; an official from the other hospital said the CHS program had paid it at 100 percent of its billed charges. The official described these previous rates as “ridiculous” because no other payer they interacted with paid such high rates. Officials from both hospitals indicated that they are now paid at MLRs. Officials from both of these hospitals noted that they see most CHS program patients through the emergency room and their hospital has an obligation under the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (EMTALA) to treat them regardless of their ability to pay. Officials from one of the hospitals that did not experience a decrease in rates also noted its EMTALA obligation in the context of access to care.

Medicare designates some small, rural hospitals as CAHs, which allows them to be paid at higher rates under a different payment methodology. not have the funding flexibility to settle with hospitals if the interim report is later determined to need adjustment.

While the implementation of the MLR requirement had little financial effect on most of the hospitals that we interviewed, officials from all nine hospitals cited other factors that affected the payments they received from the CHS program. For example, officials from seven hospitals said they experienced problems having claims paid in a timely way by the CHS program or that they spent more staff time processing CHS program claims than they did for other payers. hospitals added that they were negatively affected when IHS made the decision to close the emergency room in local IHS facilities because this resulted in an increased patient load that placed greater pressure on their emergency rooms.

We previously reported that a selection of hospital and office-based providers described similar burdens resulting from their interactions with the CHS program, including challenges in determining patient eligibility for CHS payment of services, in obtaining CHS payment, and in receiving communications on CHS policies and procedures from IHS related to payment. See GAO-11-767.

IHS and Tribal Officials Said the MLR Requirement Allowed Them to Expand Access and Said That a Similar Cap for Nonhospital Services Could Have Similar Benefits

IHS and tribal officials we interviewed said that setting payments for hospital services at MLRs (as required by statute) allowed the CHS program to reduce payments and expand access to care. They also agreed that a cap on payments to nonhospital providers, including physicians, could have similar benefits, although some officials noted that these benefits may not be achieved by all CHS programs.

IHS and Tribal Officials We Interviewed Said the MLR Requirement Allowed Them to Reduce Payments to Hospitals and Expand Access to Care

IHS and tribal officials we interviewed said that the implementation of the MLR requirement in 2007 allowed the CHS program to reduce payments for hospital services. Although IHS officials told us that prior to the implementation of the MLR requirement, area offices had negotiated to pay many hospitals at Medicare rates, officials we interviewed from four of the six area offices noted that some hospitals were unwilling to negotiate reduced rates and therefore were paid at billed charges. The MLR requirement required these hospitals to accept Medicare rates. IHS officials noted that tribally operated CHS programs likely experienced more savings from the MLR requirement than federally operated CHS programs because tribally operated CHS programs were generally less successful at negotiating contracts with hospitals for reduced rates. Officials from three tribes, for example, told us that they had difficulty negotiating for reduced rates with hospitals and the MLR requirement enabled them to pay lower rates than they had been able to negotiate. Overall, the tribal officials we interviewed agreed that the MLR requirement benefited tribal programs by allowing them to achieve savings. IHS officials also indicated that the MLR requirement allowed them to devote less staff time to negotiating contracts for hospital services at lower rates. One tribal official also noted that her tribe had already successfully contracted with hospitals for Medicare rates, but said that the MLR requirement allowed the tribe to save the time and staff resources it had spent negotiating contracts.

IHS and tribal officials indicated that reduced payments from the MLR requirement allowed the CHS program to expand access to care. For example, officials from two area offices said that the lower rates from the implementation of the MLR requirement have allowed some federal CHS programs that could previously only fund high-priority (priority level I) cases to now fund both priority level I and priority level II cases—cases that would have previously been deferred or denied. IHS officials indicated that the lower payment rates paid to providers under the MLR requirement have also allowed IHS to sustain the Catastrophic Health Emergency Fund (CHEF) longer than it could prior to the implementation of MLR because the higher payment rates would deplete the fund earlier in the fiscal year. They said that IHS is now able to reimburse CHS programs for more high-cost medical cases under CHEF than it could prior to the implementation of the MLR requirement. In addition, IHS officials said that, prior to the implementation of the MLR requirement, hospitals were not required to accept IHS patients and would sometimes turn them away in nonemergency situations. As part of the MLR requirement, Medicare-participating hospitals are required to accept IHS patients at the MLR rates, which IHS officials said has expanded access to care for IHS patients.

IHS and tribal officials we interviewed did not identify any ongoing challenges with patient access to care related to implementation of the MLR requirement. Officials from three area offices said that they were not aware of any challenges resulting from the implementation of the MLR requirement, although officials from the other three area offices and some tribal officials said that there were some initial challenges. They said that some hospitals initially refused to accept the new rates, so CHS program staff may have had to spend time educating them about the new requirement. They noted that the hospitals eventually accepted the required rates and it did not negatively affect patient access to care.

IHS and Tribal Officials Described Challenges Contracting with Nonhospital Providers for Reduced Rates and Said That a Cap at Medicare Rates Could Be Beneficial, despite Certain Concerns

IHS and tribal officials said CHS programs experienced challenges contracting for negotiated rates with nonhospital providers. Five of the six IHS area offices that we interviewed acknowledged that they were unlikely to be able to negotiate with many additional providers. Officials from all six area offices described their efforts to contract with any known nonhospital providers, which included sending contract documentation to frequently used providers or new providers in their areas. However, officials from three area offices noted that many providers do not respond. Officials from two area offices said that there can be challenges negotiating contracts in rural areas served by a single physician who may have little incentive to negotiate a reduced rate. Area office officials also noted that certain physician subspecialties, such as those providing services for cancer or kidney disease, tend to be more resistant to negotiating contracts. The officials said that this could be because these physicians see fewer CHS program patients or because the physicians believe that the lower rate would not cover their cost of doing business. These challenges are not new for the CHS program. For example, in 1991, IHS stated that it had not been possible for the program to contract The with each of the 4,600 professionals that it used on a regular basis.agency noted that it had experienced difficulty negotiating contracts because many providers were unwilling to contract and the area offices lacked the resources necessary to negotiate contracts. Tribal officials described similar challenges related to contracting. In addition, some tribal officials noted that nonhospital providers are particularly hesitant to negotiate contracts because of a history of problems getting paid in a timely way by the CHS program.

Officials from all six of the area offices said that a cap on nonhospital services, including physician services, at Medicare rates would reduce payments to providers and they believed that the overall effect for the CHS program would be positive. Officials from all six area offices specifically cited the resulting financial savings from the cap and indicated that this would allow the CHS programs to pay for more care. Officials from four area offices noted that a cap would be particularly beneficial in lowering the cost of certain high-cost nonhospital services, such as cancer treatments, dialysis, and air ambulance services. Officials from some of these areas said that providers of these services have been less likely to negotiate contracts. IHS headquarters also identified these same services as high-volume and high-cost services that could benefit from a rate cap. Officials from two area offices added that a cap based on an established fee schedule would help standardize the rates that CHS programs pay physicians, which would make it easier for programs to estimate their spending. Officials from one area office indicated that it was time consuming to identify physicians and attempt to negotiate contracts for lower rates, and a cap would eliminate the need for these efforts. However, IHS headquarters officials told us that they would not be able to implement a cap for nonhospital services, including physician services, unless the agency received explicit statutory authority to do so, because the current law requiring MLRs is limited to hospital services.

The other two area offices indicated that they did not expect a cap on nonhospital services to create any problems with patient access to care.

Medicare payment rates using the different payment methodologies used by CMS. BCSBNM officials also noted that a cap on nonhospital providers would require them to implement changes to their payment system to track and collect additional claims data. Officials from one area office noted that the added complexity could be especially challenging for tribal CHS programs that do not contract with a fiscal intermediary to process their claims. Similarly, officials from one tribal area indicated that it was difficult for some tribes to learn how to calculate hospital rates when the MLR requirement was implemented, and they expected that calculating rates for nonhospital services would be more challenging.

The tribal officials that we interviewed agreed that a cap on payments for nonhospital services, including physician services, could reduce CHS program payments to providers and achieve savings, although some officials noted that these benefits may not be achieved by all CHS programs. Some tribal officials indicated that a cap on nonhospital services at Medicare rates could save them money. For example, officials from one tribe said that, because individual providers had been unwilling to contract with them, they contract with a private insurer to utilize the rates that insurer has negotiated with providers. However, the tribal officials noted that the insurer’s negotiated rates are still higher than Medicare rates, so capping CHS program payments for nonhospital services at Medicare rates would allow the tribe to further lower its rates without having to contract with the private insurer. They indicated that these savings would allow them to expand patient access to care. However, officials from some tribes worried that a cap could result in access-to-care problems if physicians decided to stop seeing CHS program patients because of the lower payment rates. For example, tribal officials from one area noted that, while a cap could be beneficial for the general CHS program, it could lead to problems for certain tribes. They said that some physicians serving a large, rural tribe in their area had already chosen not to participate in Medicare because of the low payment rates. IHS headquarters officials noted that they had heard similar concerns during their discussions with tribal officials, although the tribal officials had generally been supportive of a cap to reduce CHS program payments for nonhospital services, including physician services.

IHS officials indicated that it would be important to monitor patient access to care if CHS program payment rates for nonhospital services were changed. The officials said that IHS currently tracks the number of individuals who are unable to have care funded by the CHS program because, for example, of a lack of funding. However, it does not have a mechanism, such as a survey, to obtain information about patient access to care and physicians’ willingness to accept CHS program payments. They said that IHS would likely be able to monitor these issues if mechanisms were put in place prior to any changes in payment rates.

Conclusions

IHS’s CHS program serves as an important resource for American Indian and Alaska Native patients who need health care services that are not available in federal and tribal facilities. However, most federally and tribally operated CHS programs are unable to pay for all needed services, which underscores the need for them to maximize the care they can purchase within available funding. The 2007 implementation of the MLR requirement for hospitals allowed IHS and tribes to reduce the cost of hospital services and use those savings to pay for more care. Nonhospital services, including physician services, were not included in the scope of the MLR requirement, and the CHS program continues to rely on the ability of area offices to negotiate contracts with individual providers for reduced rates that are lower than billed charges. Since 1986, IHS policy has stated that area offices should attempt to negotiate with providers at rates that are no higher than Medicare rates, and IHS officials we interviewed described time-consuming efforts to establish such contracts. However, in 2010, IHS still primarily paid nonhospital providers, including physicians, at their billed charges. Our findings, which indicate that IHS could have saved an estimated $32 million out of the $62.5 million that federally operated CHS programs spent on physician services provided in 2010, are consistent with a 2009 OIG report and a 2009 internal IHS study. If trends in payments for other types of nonhospital services and the tribal CHS programs are similar to the payments for the federal CHS program physician services that we examined, we estimate that savings from capping all nonhospital services paid by federal and tribal CHS programs at Medicare rates could be significantly higher. These savings could be used to pay for some of the many services that the CHS program is unable to fund each year.

As a steward of public resources, IHS is responsible and accountable for using taxpayer funds efficiently and effectively. Despite the OIG’s 2009 recommendation that IHS seek legislative authority to cap CHS program payments for nonhospital providers, including physicians, the agency has not pursued that authority. As a consequence, while other major federal health care payers have based their payment methodologies on Medicare, IHS still pays significantly higher billed charges for many services. Setting CHS program physician and other nonhospital payments at rates consistent with Medicare and the rates of these other federal agencies would enable IHS to achieve needed savings that could be used to expand patient access to health care. Moreover, given the possibility that a change in payment rates could affect access to care in certain areas, it is important that IHS put mechanisms in place to monitor patient access to care to assess how new payment rates may benefit or impede the availability of care.

Matter for Congressional Consideration

Congress should consider imposing a cap on payments for physician and other nonhospital services made through IHS’s CHS program that is consistent with the rates paid by other federal agencies.

Recommendation for Executive Action

Should the Congress decide to cap payments for physician and other nonhospital services made through IHS’s CHS program, we recommend that the Secretary of Health and Human Services direct the Director of IHS to monitor CHS program patient access to physician and other nonhospital care in order to assess how any new payment rates may benefit or impede the availability of care.

Agency Comments and Our Evaluation

We provided a draft of this report to HHS for review and received written comments, which are reprinted in appendix I. HHS agreed with our conclusions and our recommendation. Specifically, HHS indicated that implementing a cap on CHS program payments to physicians and other nonhospital services at Medicare rates would enable the CHS program to fund additional services. HHS also indicated that monitoring patient access to care in light of any payment changes is essential to providing high-quality health care to American Indians and Alaska Natives.

We are sending copies of this report to the Secretary of Health and Human Services and other interested parties. In addition, the report is available at no charge on the GAO website at http://www.gao.gov.

If you or your staff have any questions about this report, please contact me at (202) 512-7114 or kingk@gao.gov. Contact points for our Offices of Congressional Relations and Public Affairs may be found on the last page of this report. GAO staff who made major contributions to this report are listed in appendix II.

Appendix I: Comments from the Department of Health and Human Services

Appendix II: GAO Contact and Staff Acknowledgments

GAO Contact

Staff Acknowledgments

In addition to the contact name above, Catina Bradley, Assistant Director; Julianne Flowers; William Hadley; Sarah-Lynn McGrath; Lisa Motley; Laurie Pachter; and Michael Rose made key contributions to this report.