Physicians Credentialing Criteria

Physicians Credentialing Criteria

Credentialing is a necessary evil process. Postponed a bit, it can create scheduling nightmares, cash-flow delays and other troublesome activities. To make the complicated process a little bit easier, there are a number of criteria that any doctor has to verify in order to get credentialed without problems.

Proof of identity
This is a pretty straightforward step, verifying doctor's identity with government-issued papers and quality photo ensures that your identity is correct. That is the very first step that you have to make, and you should submit:
• VISA or employment verification card
• NPI number
• I-9 documentation

Education and training
Don't forget to include all education and training entities that can prove medical school's education and training. They should also include start and end dates. If you have a time gap more than 3 months, you will also have to explain why. These explanations should shed light on important details of your training experience that are not written in self-reported materials. Remember that your explanations provide insights into your past practice that is crucial for credentialing decision. Here you should include:
• Complete list of residency, medical schools, internship and completion dates, as well as any other relevant experience
• explanation of time gaps (if any)
• Fifth Pathway certification
• ECFMG validation

Military service
Just like your education and training recordings, verifying your military experience provides an insight into your past and professional competency. Here you should provide all details about your performance. Explaining time gaps is not as important as before, but don't forget that you need to explain them in a written form. To verify your experience, include:
• The full list of military experience
• DD214 is it's recently discharged
• military branch, if you're currently serving

Professional Licensure
Your obtained, held and rescinds licenses show your professional competency, experience, performance, and demeanor. You should submit the status, dates and validity of all licenses listed in the application. Rescinded licenses once again provide an insight into your history and you should be ready to confirm a written explanation for licenses. Obtained licenses verify your ability to practice in a particular field. Note that you should be licensed in the state where you practice. MSPs directly investigate all license sanctions, revocations, reprimands, suspensions and probations that the licensing entity of NPDB verifies. Simply put, you should attach:
• Copies of all licenses and their issuing date, number, type, status and expiration dates.

DEA Registration, CDS Certifications and State DPS
DEA (Drug Enforcement Agency) confirms your DEA certification. It also states if you're certified to dispense, prescribe and administer controlled substances. Note that the DEA address should match the state where you're going to practice. There are also states that require a specific license to dispense, administer or prescribe controlled substances. If that's the case, you have to obtain either DPS (Department of Public Safety) or CDS (Controlled Dangerous Substance) certifications and abide by state's renewal policies and regulations. Include copies of DEA, DPS and/or CDC certificates and write issuing dates, registration number, status and expiration dates.

Board Certification
The main source for this verification is the certifying Board. Sometimes there are specific state requirements, and this verification has to adhere to them all. For instance, physicians can be required to be members of the ABMS (American Board of Medical Specialties) or the AOA (American Osteopathic Association). Here you should add:
• A complete list of Board certifications plus original dates, expiration dates and recertification dates.

Work History
Your application and the CV will be checked against the primary source. A good practitioner shouldn't have any adverse professional review action taken by work affiliation or by an employer. Adverse actions mean revoking, reducing, suspending or denying to renew membership or privileges in a health care facility. Good standing means that neither clinical privileges nor membership has ever been restricted, reduced, denied or not renewed. You should also provide a written explanation for time gaps longer than a month as well as start and end days. The end dates are needed if you are affiliated with an employer for more than 5 years. Don't forget to include:
• Chronological, full list of facilities in which you have worked (such as hospitals, practice groups, etc.), including start and end dates, date on staff, good standing verification
• explanation of time gaps

Criminal Background Disclosure
Background disclosure should include a National Criminal Search and a Country Criminal Search. It's needed to check your criminal activity within the last seven years. MSPs quires the Country and National Criminal Searches for all countries in which you have worked or resided. Criminal Searches use different databases to collect all important information such as terrorist activity and sex-offender data. If you have felony convictions, criminal or rehabilitation history, it will require a more extensive check. Criminal background check happens during the initial credentialing and every four years after that.

Premier Credentialing Solutions, LLC has the best credentialing and licensing solutions for you and your business; We proudly offer Provider Enrollment & Physician Credentialing, Medicare – Provider Enrollment & Revalidation, Medical Licensure Services, and Full-Service Credentialing For Billers / Billing Companies. Call (800) 455-4773 for a free, no-obligation consultation.

©  Premier Credentialing Solutions, LLC.  An Illinois-Registered LLC.  2017.  All Rights Reserved.

How to Submit A Provider Enrollment Application?

How to Submit A Provider Enrollment Application?

Credentialing is a process of evaluation of doctor's practice and qualification. It includes a thorough review of education, residency, training and licenses. All qualifications issued by the board in the field of specialty are also verified. The doctor has to go through this process before joining any hospital's team. Credentials are reviewed on a regular basis and each state has its own standards and regulations.

The main role of credentialing is to ensure quality health care. To submit your application, you should include all information concerning your practice. Gather all your background information and be prepared that it will be checked for reliable sources, such as American Board of Medical Specialties and National Practitioner Data Bank.

If you don't want your application to be denied, include even small details in your application. Add all states where you report an active medical license, all your schools and training programs with start and end dates, include Controlled Substance Registration to confirm that you're authorized to prescribe drugs. Sometimes, you should also prove that you're not banned from treating Medicaid and Medicare patients. Your personal history is also required - different disciplinary actions is a red flag for many hospitals. After receiving your application, the Credentialing Committee will decide whether or not you can participate in patient care in the facility.

Some of your general information is also required. Your name and location, gender and specialty are accepted through a document that states this information is complete and correct. If you're going to provide your services in several specialties, they all should be listed. Patient focus, which shows if you have a patient age specialization, and languages spoken both should be in the application.

Board certifications mean that you have been awarded a certification from the American Board of Medical Specialties. The certificate represents your current experience, skills, and knowledge and ensures you can provide quality care. Many hospitals include board certification into the credentialing process and it's worth valuing your time and effort in obtaining the Certificate.

Credential applications are usually fill able on the computer. Simply fill out all information in the fields, this will provide more easy-readable information - which reduces the amount of questions, mistakes and delays during the credentialing process. Always take a signed copy for yourself before mailing the application to the committee. However, signatures still should be handwritten.

The easiest way to submit your application is via PECOS, or Provider Enrollment, Chain and Ownership System. PECOS helps you with the application, so don't leave blank field and supply all important information. It results in a better-filled and more accurate application and saves a lot of time and money.

You can also submit your application by mailing it to the intermediary that serves your location. To avoid delays, mail your application to the right intermediary. Credentialing isn't a swift process and you really want to plan everything ahead, sometimes even six or nine months before sending the application. Completing the forms takes longer today than in the past due to an increase of required documents, but if you're not going to forego all privileges, you can't do much about it.

Premier Credentialing Solutions, LLC has the best credentialing and licensing solutions for you and your business; We proudly offer Provider Enrollment & Physician Credentialing, Medicare – Provider Enrollment & Revalidation, Medical Licensure Services, and Full-Service Credentialing For Billers / Billing Companies. Call (800) 455-4773 for a free, no-obligation consultation.

©  Premier Credentialing Solutions, LLC.  An Illinois-Registered LLC.  2017.  All Rights Reserved.

Thoroughly Explained Physician Credentialing Process

Thoroughly Explained Physician Credentialing Process

Credentialing process for a hospital is a difficult task, concerning the amount of documents that have to be checked before accepting a provider into the facility. For that reason, you should know how to properly perform a credentialing process.

To begin the process, make the list of pote
ntial applicants. Define those physicians who you think will invest in the facility, but keep the list short. If your center is multi-specialty and the owning entity says the ASC is going to have an open staff, you should go through all specialties and find available physicians. After that, one of the staff members will have a meeting with those physicians and determine whether or not they want to apply for credentials.

The next step is to collect correct contact information. Some physicians want the ASC to go through a nurse or managers, other prefer to be contacted directly. Up-to-date information is a simple thing that can cause lots of troubles if you don't have it. You will have to check in with the chosen physician throughout the credentialing process and send multiple forms, so make sure you have a database of current contact information.

Now it's time for the most time-consuming part - background check. This is the most troublesome task in the credentialing process since one of your staff members should go through all information and then verify that it's accurate and complete. This includes:

•    Verifying employment history
•    Verifying education and training with help of American Medical Association
•    Reviewing time gaps in career and asking to provide explanation if a physician has a gap longer than 6 months
•    Asking the National Practitioner Data Bank about settled and closed claims history
•    Using OIG sanctions database to verify Medicare sanction information
•    Verifying the status of privileges at other health facilities

Once all this information has been checked and verified, you can move to studying references and determining whether or not this physician can treat patients in the facility.

Check if there are any malpractice claims

While checking information through the National Practitioner Bank, you may find information on closed suits, settlements, and other malpractice claims history. If a physician has a malpractice claim, it doesn't mean he shouldn't be credentialed. It's a red flag, but if physicians have closed suits and malpractice claims, it just means you should apply scrutiny to the application.
After your specialist has confirmed the information in the application, it should be sent to the governing body for a final check. By this time, all red flags should be discussed.
Create a list to track the progress of chosen physicians.

You and your credentialing coordinator should keep checking the progress of the application. It's better to do checks weekly and make sure your coordinator knows when forms were sent to the physicians and when they submitted all information to the facility. Besides, your coordinator should also keep track of all references that haven't been responded.

Premier Credentialing Solutions, LLC has the best credentialing and licensing solutions for you and your business; We proudly offer Provider Enrollment & Physician Credentialing, Medicare – Provider Enrollment & Revalidation, Medical Licensure Services, and Full-Service Credentialing For Billers / Billing Companies. Call (800) 455-4773 for a free, no-obligation consultation.

©  Premier Credentialing Solutions, LLC.  An Illinois-Registered LLC.  2017.  All Rights Reserved

How To Perform The Criminal Background Check During The Credentialing Process

How To Perform The Criminal Background Check During The Credentialing Process

Credentialing means a process of collecting, verifying and evaluating the qualifications and skills of physicians to provide quality care services for a healthcare facility. There are three main components of the process: education and relevant training, current licensure, and current competence, which allows to perform certain procedures and treatments.
Credentialing committees have to deal with credentialing applications daily, but how can a criminal background check complement this process.

Background check and credentialing

Medical staff service is a governing body of a healthcare facility and is responsible for working with independent physicians who serve the hospital. Many physicians appointed to provide services are not actually employed by the hospital, and that's why human resource department doesn't perform the background check and verification of provided information. But the credentialing committee does. The background check is an analysis of criminal records, education verifications, professional licensures verification, training verification, and that's just a few components out of many. For the credentialing committee, the process of granting credentials also includes verification of clean background information. They check peer recommendations, malpractice claims and insurance statuses. The goal is to protect patients from unqualified physicians.

Background check is a risk mitigation tool

While medical service doesn't perform the same employment activities as the HR department, they perform a thorough background check on all physicians applying for credentials or privileges, since it's one of the best ways to mitigate risks for the hospital and protect its patients from preventable serious mistakes.

Checking a criminal history (if any) on a physician performing procedures on the patients can save your reputation. While in some states medical board can perform the criminal background check on physicians applying for licensure, not all of them are allowed to do it. However, even if they have the authorization to perform background checks, they may have limited access to different databases. Moreover, medical board may not perform a thorough check and fail to define troubled physicians. So, without a background check, you may overlook some serious records of a criminal history.

One background check may not be enough

Even if the medical board performs a background check on physicians applying for privileges at the hospital, they can't prove physicians haven't committed any crimes since then. Even if there is a medical staff office at the hospital and they perform their own check, it shouldn't be done only once. To reduce risks, the trend in healthcare facilities for constantly performing background checks is emerging. For example, many hospitals re-check the background criminal history every year, to minimize levels of risk for the healthcare facility. Some hospitals perform a re-check of background information every two years, and a lot can happen during this time. As many experts explain, a criminal background check is a snapshot in time - it's always possible to find something new in future, something that you didn't find on the first background check performed during the credentialing process.

Premier Credentialing Solutions, LLC has the best credentialing and licensing solutions for you and your business; We proudly offer Provider Enrollment & Physician Credentialing, Medicare – Provider Enrollment & Revalidation, Medical Licensure Services, and Full-Service Credentialing For Billers / Billing Companies. Call (800) 455-4773 for a free, no-obligation consultation.

©  Premier Credentialing Solutions, LLC.  An Illinois-Registered LLC.  2017.  All Rights Reserved.