Are you ensuring your healthcare organization’s compliance with all applicable sanctions, laws, and regulations?
Once, the CEO of a large hospital network stated, “Healthcare sanctions screening is not only a legal requirement but an important duty to protect patients and the community.”
Health care sanctions screening refers to checking up on patients, partners, and vendors on governmental watchlists to determine whether these individuals or entities are prohibited.
Healthcare providers have to ensure an efficient screening process for sanctions is in place. Non-compliance can mean high risks for serious monetary fines and loss of your operating license.
This article guides you step-by-step through the process of setting up and managing your healthcare organization’s efficient sanctions screening.
Sanction regulations
Firms must be aware of all the sanction regulations that apply to their healthcare organization. Some of the requirements include the requirements for OFAC sanctions screening.
Research must be conducted on which government watchlists must check for healthcare sanctions screening, including the 2024 OFAC list.
It has more than 9,000 individuals and entities. Also, monitor any new sanctions or new additions to those already in place which may affect your sanction compliance process.
Bonus: A sanction screening program is one of the simplest practices a company can engage in to avoid any penalty due to non-compliance with regulations.
Set up screening processes.
Once the regulatory landscape is understood, processes to screen sanction lists need to be established.
The decision on whether to do sanctions background checks internally or through an external vendor needs to be made.
Clear details defining standard operating procedures need to be established for screening sanction lists for new and existing patients, partners, and vendors.
OFAC sanctions programs currently list over 300. An individual needs to be assigned to oversee sanction screening and be a point of contact for sanction compliance.
Gather necessary information
To conduct the actual screening accurately, some specific data points must be gathered. Collect personal information such as full names, dates of birth, and addresses for all individuals and entities.
Also, at the stage of collecting information, provide ownership information, license numbers, and tax IDs.
According to the Financial Action Task Force, 60% of the countries face difficulties in effective sanction screening.
Select screening technology
Define the needed information and then look for the appropriate screening technology. Review software and tools that can allow automated sanctions background checks efficiently.
These features need to be simple to use, have integration possibilities, and provide dependable modifications of real-time sanctions data.
85% of organizations report compliance improvements and reduced risks with the automation of screening solutions. This makes it possible for healthcare sanctions screening procedures to function smoothly.
Train screening personnel
The proper training of sanction list screening personnel is essential. All service providers doing sanctions list screening and background checks must be given training.
They must be conversant with the sanctions rules, the process of screening, and what constitutes a match.
The trainers can be suppliers of fines and sanctions compliance software. A sequence of refreshers keeps information current and applicable to practice.
A well-trained team in screening is a must to arrive at correct and compliant healthcare sanction screening.
In 2023, 25% of healthcare organizations experienced an issue with sanctions compliance in evolution.
Perform regular screening
Screening needs to be an ongoing compliance activity rather than just an annual, monthly, or other periodic task.
Schedule regular screening of new names according to the volume, such as daily, weekly, or monthly. Re-screen existing records periodically, perhaps at each change in regulations.
Conduct screening prior to the commencement of new business relationships and before client engagements.
Preemptive screening averts unintended sanctions violations and assures smooth financial and healthcare operations. Organizations risk non-compliance by up to 60% if they screen regularly against sanctions lists.
Monitor watch lists
Updating screening with the most current watchlists is fundamental. Sanctions may be appended or deleted continually. In 2023, over 1,000 changes have been reported.
Use screening software alert features to know when lists evolve. Designate someone to monitor designated government websites and confirm timely list uploads.
This ensures accurate healthcare sanctions screening. Updating the list maintains current compliance with sanctions.
Take appropriate actions
In case of a sanctions match, have procedures in place for what to do next. Identify who will check the results and who will take the process up the line.
Education on checking false positives is crucial as well. Be familiar with reporting requirements to the proper authorities.
In the case of actual matches, make sure you know how to freeze or stop prohibited activity, institute any audits, and correct your position.
It can get issues resolved and risks reduced before they become significant problems. As of last year, 25% of respondents reported experiencing sanction-related compliance problems.
Review screening program
Continuous improvement is key. Monitor screening processes to improve continuously. Keep statistics volumes of screening and updates on changes to watchlists.
In 2023, 15% of organizations reported screening volumes were greater than the prior year. Seek feedback from each team that will be impacted.
Leverage knowledge as a door to continually improve the program, remediate bugs, close gaps, and update documentation.
Sanctions screening in healthcare only comes from periodic reviews of performance and compliance
