NO DOS
How does DataFile handle the “wild goose chase” - requests for records
for which no date of service (DOS) is found?
LetDsvstartvwithvsomevbackgroundvstatistics:
vvvvvvvvvv’vFC8WvTwenty’eightvstatesvallowvrecordsvcustodiansvtovbillvforvrecordsvrequestsvwhich
vvvvvvvvvvvvvdovnotvreturnvavvdatevofvservicevForvthevpatientvdoesnDtvexistvinvthevorganizationDsv
vvvvvvvvvvvvvsystemW
vvvvvvvvvv’vFCWvTwovstatesvprohibitvthisvpractice
vvvvvvvvvv’vFC/WvTwentyvstatesvdovnotvcarryvregulatoryvlanguagevwhichvallowsvorvprohibitsvthis
vvvv
vvvvvvvvvvvvvpracticeEvItvisvvague
and open to interpretation.
vvvvvvvvvvvvv
v v v v v DataFilev willv alwaysv actv inv thev bestv interestv ofv ourv clientsv andv willv workv tirelesslyv tov
removev thev burdenv ofv managingv thev relationshipv withv requestersEv Whatv followsv isv anv
explanationv ofv ourv policyv regardingv nov datev ofv servicev beingv foundv asv wellv asv av practicalv
examplevofvthisvpolicyvusingvourvhomevstatevofvMissouriEv
No Date of Service Found
vvvvvHerevisvwherevthevproverbialvrubbervmeetsvthevroadvinvregardsvtovrelationshipsvbetweenvDataFilevandv
thirdvpartyvrequestersEvThevbottomvlinevisvthis:vIfvpermittedvbyvstatevlaw,vDataFilevwillvbillvforvrequestsvforv
whichv nov datev ofv servicev canv bev locatedEv DataFilev treatsv thirdv partiesv withv respectv andv understandingv ofv
workflowvcostsvandvwevexpectvthevsamevinvreturnEvvvvvvv
vvvvvWhenvavthirdvpartyvseeksvavrecordvforvwhichvnovdatevofvservicevcanvbevfound,vitvmeansvthatvavmistakevwasv
madev atv somev pointv duringv thev requestv workflowv priorv tov itv arrivingv atv yourv Forv DataFile’sWv doorstepEv
Examplesvofvpossiblevmistakesvare:
vvvvvvvvvvv’vPatientvgavevthevwrongvprovidervnamevandPorvnamevofvpracticeE
vvvvvvvvvvv’vInsurancevcompanyvprovidedvcompletelyvwrongvinformationvandvnovpatientvexistsE
vvvvvvvvvvv’vPatientvconfusedvwhichvservicesvtheyvreceivedvatvdifferentvprovidersEv
vvvvvvvStatevlawsvarevmeantvtovensurevthatvequallyvbeneficialvrelationshipsvexistvbetweenvrequesters,vpatients,v
andv ofv thev custodiansv ofv thev requestedv recordsEv Certainv statesv havev recognizedv thatv itv isv inv nov wayv thev
responsibilityv ofv thev recordsv custodianv tov bearv thev burdenv ofv requesterv Forv patientWv mistakesEvHerev atv
DataFile,v wev callv thisv typev ofv situationv thev xwildv goosev chasex,v meaningv thatv wev mustv executev ourv HIPAAv
compliantvworkflowsvforveveryvrequestvwevget,vandvwhenvwevgetvtovthevendvofvthatvworkflowvwithvnovresult,v
wevarevcompletelyvwithinvourvrightvtovseekvcompensationvforvunnecessarilyvdrainedvresourcesEv
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NO DOS
This policy is often disputed due to a lack of understanding on the part of third party requesters, who are
unable to comprehend the amount of resources which are required for the processing of each request.
These requesters may not order “that many” sets of medical records. Also, if ROI management is handled
in-house by clinic staff and not an outside expert like DataFile, many providers’ offices do not understand all
of the state laws and are less likely to seek compensation for their time in situations which take up time and
money. In defense of the requester, they aren’t “used” to getting an invoice when no records are produced.
DataFile believes that states have chosen not to exclude the practice of billing for this procedure with the
goal of maintaining an equally distributed onus for only creating necessary workloads for all involved parties.
DataFile has determined that third party requesters would be well within their rights to seek compensation
from the entity which provided them with inaccurate information and initiated the process which resulted in
the inability to find the desired medical records. Meaning, if a patient told the insurance company the wrong
dates of service, then the fault lies with the patient.
We do not believe it is unreasonable to expect of third party requesters that they will carefully monitor
the information to be used in a request to ensure accuracy so that all parties involved are able to work as
efficiently as possible. DataFile is always willing to discuss fees and regulations with third parties in order to
share our understanding and professional best practices. In summation, someone must pay for the “wild
goose chase”, we do not believe that cost should be unfairly passed on to DataFile, but even more importantly; DataFile will not allow it to be passed to our clients.
Proof is in the Policy
We at DataFile believe in using our experience to develop the policies which guide our business. In this
case, our home state of Missouri can serve as an example of a state which does not clearly define whether
or not a records custodian may charge for requests which do not return a date of service.
Neither attorneys nor records custodians in the state of Missouri are able to cite regulatory language
which clearly defines the permissibility of billing for records when no date of service is found. Despite the
lack of definition, DataFile is able to produce a list of more than fifty attorneys in Missouri who pay a fee for
these records on a regular basis. This mutually agreed upon practice is a result of the willingness of both
parties to communicate openly and honestly about our respective positions on the regulatory standards.
The attorneys who are willing to pay the fees for these services have realized that since the law does not
specifically exclude the practice of billing for these records, the statutes cannot be leveraged in their favor
simply because they “have never had to pay for these records before”. Monthly, DataFile collects fees
for over 100 requests which do not return a date of service.
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NO DOS
Our Request of You
If you or your team receives a call from a requester complaining about an invoice for “no records found”
or “no date of service” please refer them to DataFile! As your partner, we don’t expect you to fight our
battles for us, after all, this is why you partnered with us in the first place! It’s our “wild goose chase”
that the requester sent us on, we’ll work it out with them and provide as little intrusion on your practice and
your patients as possible.
When it comes to customer service, if on a scale from 1-10 you cannot assign us "10", then we might
as well be a zero. This is our theory because we do not believe that you deserve anything other than 100%
satisfaction from your relationship with DataFile. If we’re not a “10” for you, call us today to schedule a
meeting to change this. We’ll do everything within our power to ensure your satisfaction!
Refer them to DataFile: 816-437-9134
status@datafiletechnologies.com
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