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4 Benefits of FACIS® Healthcare Background Screening

Tammy Cohen, PHR, SHRM-CP
March 8 2016

The healthcare industry’s role in society is a vital one, as they meet the needs of some many vulnerable populations. Medical organizations must be sure to hire professionals when providing for the care of children, elderly, and at-risk individuals. The Fraud and Abuse Control Information System (FACIS®) helps mitigate risk. FACIS screening should be part of your healthcare screening process.

Professionals in the healthcare field have several tools at their disposal to ensure candidates are good hires. For example, comprehensive background screenings and drug testing programs provide vital information you can use to assess a candidate’s suitability for a healthcare position.

Keep reading to find out more about the importance of FACIS screening to healthcare background screening for doctors, nurses, trained medical professionals, and clinical student placements.

 

FACIS® and Healthcare Background Screening

FACIS is a database containing adverse actions by medical practitioners, as well as a list of healthcare organizations that have been sanctioned. The database includes information on disciplinary actions issued against healthcare professionals, such as reprimands, probation, disqualifications, and exclusions.

FACIS screening includes a search of over 800 sources from all 50 states. Each state maintains a list of medical practitioners who have been sanctioned by state licensing boards. It also includes searches of records of federal agencies such as:

  • The Office of the Inspector General (OIG), which maintains a List of Excluded Individuals and Entities;
  • The General Services Administration (GSA), which maintains the Excluded Parties List System; and
  • The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which maintains a Debarment List covering the pharmaceutical industry

These agencies maintain these lists so that excluded individuals and medical organizations cannot seek reimbursement for any federal healthcare program. Medical practitioners and healthcare providers on these lists may have been excluded due to fraud, patient abuse, or licensing board violations. That’s why FACIS screening is so important to your risk mitigation strategy for healthcare organizations.

 

4 Ways FACIS® Screening Helps Healthcare Industry Organizations

FACIS screening is a resource that has great importance to healthcare background screening programs. Hospitals, home health agencies, pharmacies, and other medical organizations all benefit from conducting background screenings that utilize FACIS. These searches help healthcare organizations:

  1. Mitigate risk. Reduce the risk of compromising patient safety, facing negligence claims, and encountering medical malpractice lawsuits.
  2. Ensure healthcare providers are compliant with government regulations. Healthcare industry regulations include OIG guidelines, federal Medicaid and Medicare standards, and state fraud prevention laws.
  3.  Protect the reputation of their medical organizations. Trust is a key factor in consumers’ decisions about where to obtain medical care.
  4. Obtain funding from government agencies and private donors. Ensuring that the medical practitioners employed or affiliated with your healthcare organization are free of sanctions is critical to maintaining trust.

 

Partner with an Experienced Provider

A qualified background check provider can assist your medical organization with FACIS screening and implementing a comprehensive healthcare screening program. InfoMart searches FACIS Level III by default, so you can rest assured that the utmost in due diligence has been conducted on your healthcare professionals.

Get the Whole Story with InfoMart’s Healthcare Industry Trends Report

Do you know:

  • Healthcare has one of the highest rates of fraud?
  • What percent of applicants have a criminal history?
  • How hit rates have changed over the past ten years?

About Tammy Cohen

Tammy Cohen, an industry pioneer and expert in identity and employment screening, founded InfoMart 30 years ago. Deemed the “Queen of Screen,” she’s been a force behind industry-leading innovations. She was most recently the first-to-market with a fully compliant sanctions search, as well as a suite of identity services that modernizes talent onboarding. Tammy revolutionized the screening industry when she stepped into the field, developing the first client-facing application and a due diligence criminal search that has since become standard for all background screening companies. Cohen has received national awards and honors for her business and civic involvement, including Atlanta Business Chronicle’s Top 25 Women-Owned Firms in Atlanta, Enterprising Women Magazine’s Enterprising Women of the Year award, the YWCA of Northwest Georgia’s Kathryn Woods Racial Justice Award, and a commendation in the 152nd Congressional Record. To learn more about Tammy, visit www.tammycohen.com.

About InfoMart

InfoMart has been revolutionizing the global background and identity screening industry for 30 years, providing businesses the information they need to make informed hiring decisions. They develop innovative technology that modernizes talent onboarding, including a first-to-market biometric identity authentication application and a verified sanctions search. The WBENC-certified company is a founding member of the Professional Background Screening Association, and they have achieved PBSA accreditation in recognition of their consistent business practices and commitment to compliance with the FCRA. The company is dedicated to customer service, speed, and accuracy, and it has been recognized for its success, workplace culture, and corporate citizenship with over 45 industry awards. To Get the Whole Story on InfoMart, please visit www.InfoMart-USA.com, follow @InfoMartUSA, or call (770) 984-2727.

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