#1 | Since You Asked: Synergy’s Workers’ Compensation Medicare Secondary Payer Advice Column

July 28, 2021
Rasa Fumagalli JD, MSCC, CMSP-F
Introducing “Since You Asked,” Synergy’s first in a series of columns addressing MSP compliance questions in the area of workers’ compensation.
Question:
“My client is settling her case and does not know …
The Evolution of The Workers’ Compensation Medicare Set-Aside (WCMSA) Arrangement

April 8, 2021
Rasa Fumagalli JD, MSCC, CMSP-F
The nature of the Workers’ Compensation Medicare Set-Aside (WCMSA) has evolved over the years since the 2001 Patel Memo. That evolution has seen us move from every WCMSA that met the Center …
Medicare Secondary Payer Compliance Challenges in WC Cases

March 11, 2021
Rasa Fumagalli JD, MSCC, CMSP-F
Medicare Secondary Payer compliance issues in workers’ compensation cases are generally straightforward when the parties seek review of the Workers’ Compensation Medicare Set-Aside (WCMSA) proposal and proposed settlement by the Centers for …
Binding CMS to its WCMSA Determination

February 11, 2021
Rasa Fumagalli, JD, MSCC, CMSP-F
Securing CMS review of a Workers’ Compensation Medicare Set-Aside (WCMSA) proposal can, at times, be cumbersome. Once the CMS WCMSA determination letter is received, parties may often just close their files after …
Third-Party and Workers’ Compensation Case: What about the Medicare Set-Aside?

February 13, 2020
An inquiry that Synergy receives on a regular basis involves a Medicare-eligible claimant who has both a workers’ compensation and a third-party liability companion case. The third-party liability claim has resolved and now the workers’ comp carrier …
Settlement Language Can Make or Break a Workers Compensation Case

B Josh Pettingill
Appropriate settlement language can make a significant impact on the total amount of the workers’ compensation settlement, as well as dollars that the injured worker receives. This brief article will provide plaintiff/applicant attorneys with the requisite settlement …
Evidence Based MSAs (EBMAs): Don’t Accept Blindly

B Josh Pettingill
Evidence Based MSAs (EBMSAs) have taken the workers’ compensation industry by storm the past several years. It is imperative for workers’ compensation attorneys to understand how EBMSAs can impact both the settlement value, as well as your …
Taking Advantage of the WCMSA Re-Review Process

B. Josh Pettingill
We frequently receive inquiries regarding workers compensation MSAs (WCMSAs) and whether it is possible to get CMS (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services) to re-review an MSA once an amount has already been approved. The good news …