Text Box: misappropriation. This I.A. strongly recommends the provider agency review their policy / procedure regarding staff purchasing items from individuals they provide services to with their staff. As most agencies do not allow this practice, at least without proper approval from the individual’s TEAM. So in closing, there are multiple facets that need to be discussed and carried out when having a garage sale. These can be easily over looked but when dealing with an individual’s personal possessions and money, you can never be too careful. Hopefully, these suggestions can be helpful when an individual and their TEAM decide to clean house by having a garage sale. Text Box: Well, as everyone knows when the temperature gets warmer and everyone gets that Spring cleaning bug, you discover just how much stuff and possessions an individual or roommates have that do not get used. Then to get rid of all those “un-needed” items, the idea of a garage sale comes to mind. I want to cover some helpful strategies for an individual’s TEAM (individual, family members and residential provider agency / staff) to follow when having a garage sale. First and foremost, if an individual does not have a guardian, find out if the individual agrees with having a garage sale and they understand their possessions will be sold. It should be addressed that they will keep all the money generated from the sale. If an individual does have guardian, this issue needs to be discussed with the guardian. Text Box: As for what items are to be sold, that should be left up to the individual and/or their guardian. No item should be sold if individual does not want to sell the item. The TEAM should check with involved family members to ensue certain items are not family heirlooms or items passed along over the years. In determining prices, it should be decided with input from the individual (if possible), the residential staff and family members. The next step should be that an inventory list is completed of all the items that are going to be sold in the sale. This provides the residential staff with a system to track the items purchased during the sale. If there are roommates selling items in the same garage sale the staff need to make an inventory list for each roommate and track the sales accordingly. This ensures the money made from the sale items goes to the appropriate roommate. Text Box: The money generated from the garage sale should be treated as petty cash and tracked in their financial ledgers accordingly. The staff should document a deposit, in the petty cash log, in the amount of money made from the garage sale. The money generated and deposited into the petty cash ledger MUST equal the amount tracked on the inventory list. This I.A. would advise against allowing the residential staff to purchase items from a garage sale. This opens the residential staff up to possible allegations of improperly benefiting from an individual or even Text Box: Double-check that you have entered the correct codes and there are no errors on your invoices. Remember that the PAWS now uses roll-up codes for some services so the codes on the PAWS form may not necessarily be the same codes that are used for billing purposes. Please check with me if you have any questions on what codes to use for billing Text Box: There are many issues that may cause a payment delay to providers. If you have ever experienced a payment delay, you know it is very frustrating but keeping the following information in mind may help avoid this problem in the future. Turn your billing in to NOWAC (if we are your billing agent) before the 10am deadline date noted on the provider invoice. Text Box: purposes. Make on time payments to NOWAC for providing your waiver billing services. Accurately keep track of how many units you are authorized to provide, what you have provided, and how many units are left. You cannot be paid for units that exceed what has been authorized. It is the provider’s responsibility to

Garage $ales – Helpful Guidelines

By Rob Elston, Investigative Agent

 

 

Why haven’t I received my check for services yet?

By Amy Barnett, Medicaid Waiver Assistant
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Volume 7, Issue 1
Text Box: know what is available and to contact the county board in a timely manner (before exceeding the authorized units) if there are any issues with not having enough units to bill. Only submit billing for services that you are certified by ODMRDD to provide. Please contact me if you have any questions on the certification process.

“...when dealing with an individual’s personal possessions and money, you can never be too careful.”