HIPAA in 2026: The Compliance Floor Just Moved — and OCR Is Already Enforcing the New Standard
The HIPAA Security Rule is getting its first real overhaul since 2003. Enforcement was never softer. And the agency running…
Category: Policy Updates
The Telehealth Patchwork Enters a Higher-Compliance Era: What the Latest Wave of State Policy Changes Signals for Providers
By Elena Pak, Credentialing Department, WCH The operational baseline for telehealth was defined by temporary waivers, emergency declarations, and a…
CMS Has Hit “Pause” on New Hospice and Home Health Enrollment — What Dr. Oz’s Public Messaging Really Signals for Providers
When CMS Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz recently communicated — including through widely circulated public-facing and social media statements — that…
OIG Sounds the Alarm — and RAC Auditors Follow: What Every Vascular Physician Needs to Know Right Now
Federal enforcement is now targeting peripheral vascular procedures, selective catheter placement, angiograms, and vascular embolizations simultaneously. Here is what changed,…
When Your Doctor Travels, Does Your Billing Compliance Stay Behind?
By Olga Khabinskay, Director of Operations, WCH Service Bureau This article is an expanded version of a piece originally published…
HealthFirst 2026 Payment Integrity Alert
Facility vs. Non-Facility Misclassification Driving Systemic Underpayments By Susanna Bekirova, Billing Department, WCH
The Medicare Fraud Strike Force in 2026: Why Every Healthcare Provider Is Now Practicing Under a Federal Data Radar
By Nana Kazhiloti, Credentialing Department, WCH Building on our recent analysis of rising CMS claim denials, it is becoming clear…
CMS-0057-F: The Federal Rule That Could Finally Break the Prior Authorization Bottleneck
For years, prior authorization has functioned as one of the most expensive invisible taxes in American healthcare. Physicians order medically…
The Algorithm That Underpays You: What the MultiPlan and Zelis Lawsuits Mean for Independent Providers
And why your billing partner’s expertise has never mattered more. By Elena Pak, Credentialing Department, WCH The $19 Billion Problem…