The latest in the Affordable Care Act (Section 6106) compliance is payroll-based journal (PBJ) reporting, affecting nursing homes and other long-term care facilities.
What is it?
PBJ reporting will require staffing information to be collected on a more consistent basis than is currently, and also will be auditable to ensure accuracy. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid has been voluntarily collecting this data since October, but beginning in July it will be mandatory.
The requirements place more burden on the employer for detail on daily staff hours by position, by shift and by location, as well as monthly patient census. Census data includes the facility’s patient head count on the last day of each of the three months in a quarter.
This data can then be used to report on the level of staff in each nursing facility, but also to report on turnover and tenure, which can impact the quality of care delivered.
How will it be collected?
Every quarter, data will be collected. Submissions are due by the end of the 45th calendar day after the last day in each fiscal quarter to be considered timely starting July 1, 2016. Late submissions will be accepted, but are subject to enforcement actions by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and may not be used to calculate a facility’s staffing measures.
Submission methods
Hosted by CMS, the PBJ system will accept two primary submission methods:
- manual entry or
- an XML file upload of data from an automated payroll or time and attendance system.
Manual data entry will require individuals to key information into the PBJ user system. However, for those currently using an automated payroll and time and attendance system, information already is readily available, but must be uploaded following specific guidelines outlined here.
Stay tuned for more information and resources about the PBJ reporting requirements right here on the Paycom Blog.