Noridian Healthcare Solutions, LLC, Did Not Claim Some Allowable Medicare Postretirement Benefit Costs Through Its Incurred Cost Proposals

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) reimburses contractors for a portion of their postretirement benefit (PRB) costs, which are funded by the contributions that contractors make to their dedicated trust fund. At CMS's request, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (OIG), Office of Audit Services, Region VII pension audit team reviews the cost elements related to qualified defined-benefit, PRB, and any other pension-related cost elements claimed by Medicare contractors through Incurred Cost Proposals (ICPs). Previous OIG reviews found that Medicare contractors did not always correctly identify and claim PRB costs. Our objective was to determine whether the calendar years (CYs) 2009 through 2013 PRB costs that Noridian Healthcare Solutions, LLC (NHS), claimed for Medicare reimbursement, and reported on its ICPs, were allowable and correctly claimed.