Cigna Audit Defense Attorneys

Our Healthcare Defense Lawyers Represent Providers Nationwide in Cigna Healthcare Audits

Healthcare providers that bill Cigna are subject to the company’s auditing requirements, processes, and procedures. Cigna has a Corporate Audit Department that is responsible for ensuring providers’ compliance with the company’s rules and requirements (as well as the requirements of Medicare and other payors), and the Corporate Audit Department’s Special Investigations (SI) team works to “identify suspicious claims, stop payments to fraudulent providers and punish wrongdoers.”

As Cigna also notes, “The SI team also works with state and federal law enforcement and regulatory agencies and other insurance companies to detect, prevent and prosecute health care fraud. The SI team includes trained professionals with expertise in investigations, health care, nursing, law enforcement and accounting.” Thus, the risks of facing a Cigna audit can extend far beyond recoupment liability and prepayment review (which themselves can have substantial financial implications for participating providers). With this in mind, providers that are facing Cigna audits need to take these audits very seriously, and they need to assert an effective defense with the help of experienced legal counsel.

10 Important Facts about Facing a Cigna Healthcare Audit

At Oberheiden P.C., our healthcare defense lawyers bring relevant experience to representing providers during Cigna healthcare audits. We have significant experience handling audits conducted by Aetna, United Healthcare, and other companies as well. As a result of this experience, we have a comprehensive understanding of what providers can expect during the audit process, and we know what providers need to do in order to avoid unjustified liability.

Is Cigna auditing your healthcare practice? If so, here are 10 important facts you need to know:

1. Cigna Healthcare Audits Can Lead to Substantial Liability

If you have never been through a Cigna audit before, the first thing you need to know is that Cigna healthcare audits can lead to substantial liability. Cigna’s auditors will be looking for any evidence of potential billing violations; and, if your practice’s on-hand documentation does not clearly establish compliance, Cigna’s auditors will assume that this is indicative of fraud.

It is not unusual for providers to face tens of thousands, or even hundreds of thousands, of dollars in recoupment liability following Cigna healthcare audits. Cigna may impose prepayment review and other penalties as well. However, in many cases these penalties are unjustified, and providers will be able to fight back by executing a focused and strategic defense.

2. Cigna Healthcare Audits Can Also Lead to Civil or Criminal Healthcare Fraud Investigations

If Cigna’s healthcare auditors uncover evidence of billing fraud (or what they believe to be evidence of billing fraud), they may also refer providers to federal authorities for further inquiry. The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (DHHS OIG), and other federal agencies conduct civil and criminal investigations into suspected healthcare billing violations. For providers accused of significant or systematic billing violations, facing a follow-on federal investigation is a very real possibility.

3. Many Providers Face Unjustified Allegations of Healthcare Billing Fraud During Cigna Audits

While some Cigna healthcare audits uncover significant billing violations, many lead to unjustified allegations. Mistakes, overstepping auditors’ bounds, flawed interpretations of governing authority, and misguided assumptions are all frequent causes of unfounded audit determinations. The risk of facing unjustified recoupment demands is a very real concern for healthcare providers targeted in Cigna audits, and it is one of several reasons why targeted providers need experienced defense counsel.

4. Providers Must Be Prepared to Affirmatively Demonstrate Compliance with On-Hand Documentation

Given that Cigna’s auditors will err on the side of fraud, healthcare providers must be prepared to affirmatively demonstrate compliance with on-hand documentation. Minimally, targeted providers will want to have the following documentation available to discuss with Cigna’s auditors as necessary:

• Healthcare billing compliance policies and procedures
• Employee training materials and billing manuals
• Documentation of medical necessity for all billed services, supplies, and equipment
• Documentation of compliance for all billed costs (i.e., substantiation of the submitted billing code and proof that services were provided by the identified licensed provider)
• Documentation of internal billing audit and enforcement efforts

Crucially, however, providers should not simply give Cigna’s auditors open access to their books and records. This can prove to be an extremely costly mistake, as Cigna’s auditors will take advantage of the opportunity to scrutinize every possible aspect of providers’ billing, recordkeeping, and patient practices.

5. Providers That Don’t Protect Themselves Can Face Unjustified Recoupments, Prepayment Review, and Other Penalties

As noted above, Cigna healthcare audits frequently lead to unjustified demands, prepayment review, and other penalties. When facing an audit, providers cannot assume that Cigna’s auditors will reach the correct conclusions.

6. Avoiding Unjustified Penalties Requires a Strategic and Proactive Approach

Given the risk that Cigna’s auditors will make mistakes, targeted providers must take a strategic and proactive approach to defending themselves during the audit process. Providers should not simply let the audit run its course and then deal with the consequences after the fact. Instead, providers should engage defense counsel to intervene in the audit promptly, and they should work closely with their counsel to steer the audit toward a favorable outcome that avoids the need for an appeal.

7. Healthcare Providers Can (and Should) Expose Flaws During Cigna Audits

Many healthcare providers feel helpless during their Cigna audits. They see auditors making mistakes, and they feel as though their financial stability rests on the auditors’ whim. However, healthcare providers do not have to give in to the audit process. To the contrary, providers can (and should) expose flaws during Cigna audits; and, with the right approach, they can prevent these flaws from leading to unwarranted recoupment demands and other penalties.

8. Inadvertent Compliance Failures and Employee Negligence Can Lead to Unfavorable Outcomes

While auditor mistakes are common, healthcare providers need to be cognizant of the fact that their employees may make mistakes as well. In many cases, inadvertent compliance failures and employee negligence will leave providers facing unexpected liability for submitting “false and fraudulent” claims. To make informed decisions during their Cigna healthcare audits, providers need to have a clear understanding of their billing records, and this involves working with outside counsel to conduct an attorney-client privileged billing compliance assessment at the outset of the audit process.

9. Facing a Cigna Healthcare Audit is Not a One-Time Event

When facing Cigna healthcare audits, it is important for providers to keep in mind that this is not a one-time event. Cigna routinely conducts multiple audits of the same providers, and those that receive unfavorable audit determinations are likely to face additional scrutiny in the not-too-distant future.

10. Providers Need to Prioritize Compliance Before, During, and After Cigna Healthcare Audits

In light of the risks Cigna healthcare audits pose, providers need to prioritize compliance, before, during, and after their audits. Providers need to have robust billing compliance programs, and they must be prepared to demonstrate compliance as necessary. If a Cigna audit uncovers compliance deficiencies, providers must promptly address these deficiencies as well so that they do not lead to additional penalties down the line.

Put our highly experienced team on your side

Dr. Nick Oberheiden

Founder

Attorney-at-Law

John W. Sellers

Former Senior Trial Attorney
U.S. Department of Justice

Local Counsel

Joanne Fine DeLena

Former Assistant U.S. Attorney

Local Counsel

Lynette S. Byrd

Former Assistant U.S. Attorney

Partner

Amanda Marshall

Former U.S. Attorney

Local Counsel

Aaron L. Wiley

Former Federal Prosecutor

Local Counsel

Roger Bach

Former Special Agent (OIG)

Gamal Abdel-Hafiz

Former Supervisory Special Agent (FBI)

Chris Quick

Former Special Agent (FBI & IRS-CI)

Kevin M. Sheridan

Former Special Agent (FBI)

Ray Yuen

Former Supervisory Special Agent (FBI)

Dennis A. Wichern

Former Special Agent-in-Charge (DEA)

FAQs: Defending Against a Cigna Healthcare Audit

Discuss Your Cigna Healthcare Audit with a Senior Healthcare Defense Attorney at Oberheiden P.C.

Do you need outside counsel for a Cigna healthcare audit? If so, we encourage you to contact us promptly for a complimentary initial consultation. To speak with a senior healthcare defense attorney at Oberheiden P.C. in confidence, call 888-680-1745 or tell us how we can help online today.

Cigna Audit Defense Attorneys