IRS Releases Updated Intermediate Sanctions Regulations for Excess Benefit Transactions
April 17, 2008
The IRS has released updated intermediate sanctions regulations regarding penalties for excess benefit transactions. The regulations provide examples to illustrate the facts and circumstances analysis used to determine whether an organization has engaged in an excess benefit transaction. Contacts: Jennifer Hilliard or Cory Kallheim.

IRS Releases Draft Instructions for New Form 990
April 10, 2008
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has issued its draft instructions for the new Form 990 and all schedules. The IRS released the revised core Form 990 as well as the Schedules A-R in December 2007. Entities will use the new Form 990 for tax year 2008 (filing in 2009). The deadline for submission of comments on the instructions to the IRS is June 1, 2008. Contact: Jennifer Hilliard or Cory Kallheim.

AAHSA Seeks Withdrawal of Proposed DAB Rule
Posted: Feb 04, 2008
AAHSA submitted comments to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), urging HHS not to implement a proposed rule that would give the Secretary of HHS the authority to reverse decisions rendered by the Departmental Appeals Board (DAB) in nursing home survey and certification cases that do not reflect the "considered opinion" of the Secretary.

IRS Releases Final Form 990 and Schedules With Revisions Based on Comments Received
Posted:Jan. 11, 2008
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has issued its final revised Form 990 after soliciting comments on the draft from the public. The final Form 990 incorporated many of the changes proposed in the over 650 comments received by the IRS on the draft, including many of which AAHSA suggested. The IRS released the core Form 990 as well as the Schedules A-R, but instructions for the core form and schedules will be released throughout 2008. Entities will use the new Form 990 for tax year 2008 (filing in 2009).
Contact: Jennifer Hilliard at jhilliard@aahsa.org or
Cory Kallheim at ckallheim@aahsa.org

AAHSA Files Comments to IRS on Redesigned Form 990
Posted:Sept. 17, 2007
In our comments on the Internal Revenue Service's (IRS) recent draft of a redesigned Form 990, we pointed out that a proposed new schedule for reporting health care providers’ community benefit activities contains questions geared to hospitals and is not readily extended to other provider types. The revised Form 990 will be the first significant change in over 25 years to the form not-for-profits must file annually with the IRS. The IRS plans to finalize this form by the end of the year so it can be used in 2009 when organizations file their 2008 tax returns. Read our comments:

IRS Unveils Compliance Check Documents on Tax-Exempt Bond Financing
Posted:Sept. 05, 2007
The Internal Revenue Service has published a new compliance check questionnaire to evaluate whether tax–exempt charities that finance capital expenditures through exempt bonds comply with federal tax requirements post–issuance. The five–page questionnaire will be sent to about 200 organizations that indicated outstanding balances of tax–exempt liabilities on their 2005 returns.
See a description of the program.
Read the cover letter accompanying the questionnaire.
See the questionnaire.

Manuals on Federal and State Tax Exemption
Posted: Aug. 29, 2007
Two thorough papers on tax exemption are available – one on federal tax exemption and one on state property tax exemption. The papers, Manual on Federal Taxation for Charities Serving the Elderly and Manual on Property Tax Exemption for Non–for–Profit Charities Serving the Elderly were written by Andrew J. Oliver, a former AAHSA legal intern. The manuals provide information on how to qualify for federal tax exemption as well as the latest state property tax exemption analysis.
Read the Federal Tax Manual.
Read the State Property Tax Manual.

IRS Releases Draft Form 990 for Comment
The IRS has released for comment a discussion of a redesigned Form 990, the annual return filed by tax-exempt organizations. It is the first comprehensive reform of the Form 990 in over 25 years. The new Form 990 includes a 10-page Core Form and 15 associated Schedules triggered by specific responses. The deadline for submission of comments to the IRS is September 14, 2007.
See the Draft Form, Schedules and Instructions
View the Highlights: PDF, HTML
Read the Summary: PDF, HTML

Hospice and Nursing Home/Assisted Living Contracting Toolkit
Posted: April 27, 2007
Avoid potential pitfalls and violations of federal anti-kickback statutes in your contractual arrangements with hospice. Legal counsel for the Wisconsin Association of Homes and Services for the Aging, Reinhart, Boerner, Van Deuren, s.c., has developed this contracting toolkit based on their experience working with hospices and nursing facilities throughout the country. Purchase the "Hospice and Nursing Home/Assisted Living Contracting Toolkit" by May 11, 2007 and attend a FREE audio conference! Contact Brian Schoeneck, (608) 255-7060 to order today.

CMS Issues Additional Guidance on Whistleblower Staff Education
Posted: Mar. 29, 2007
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has posted in Q&A format, additional guidance on the staff information requirement of certain Deficit Reduction Act (DRA) provisions relating to the False Claims Act and whistleblower protections. The DRA information requirements became effective on Jan. 1, 2007 and applies to healthcare providers who receive Medicaid payments totaling $5 million or more per year. Such providers must provide written information to their staff on the federal False Claims Act's whistleblower protections. The new guidance includes a summary of the False Claim Act from the Department of Justice. Read the letter guidance from CMS.
Read the 3-22-07 letter
See the Q & A from CMS
Read the DOJ Summary of False Claims Act

AAHSA Provides Input to Non-Profit Panel on Self-Regulation Principles
Posted: Jan. 25, 2007
The American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging (“AAHSA”) strongly supports the work of the Panel on the Nonprofit Sector (the “Panel”) and applauds its efforts in the area of nonprofit governance. AAHSA members serve over a million people every day through mission-driven, not-for-profit organizations dedicated to providing the services people need, when they need them, in the place they call home. Our members offer the continuum of aging services: home and community based programs, adult day programs, continuing care retirement communities, nursing homes, assisted living, and senior housing. AAHSA's commitment is to create the future of aging services through quality people can trust.

Action Plan for DRA Medicaid Compliance
Posted: Nov. 21, 2006
The Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 (DRA), not only involves nearly an $11 billion cut in spending from Medicare and Medicaid over the next five years, but also addresses fraud, waste and abuse in the Medicaid reimbursement system. Section 6032 of the DRA requires certain health care providers to establish written policies and procedures to inform employees and others about certain federal and state false claims and whistleblower laws. The deadline for enacting such policies is January 1, 2007. To date, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) has not issued any guidance regarding the implementation of the DRA provisions. AAHSA anticipates that OIG guidance will be released soon, but in the meantime encourages providers to address this issue should the guidance issue after the January 1, 2007 deadline. Entities that will be subject to these provisions should adopt what they consider sufficiently “detailed provisions” describing their anti-fraud policies and procedures, relevant anti-fraud statutes, and whistleblower provisions.