Urgent: 2023 Cost Report Submission Deadline for Massachusetts Community Health Centers

AAFCPAs would like to make Massachusetts Community Health Centers aware that the Center for Health Information and Analysis (CHIA) has announced it is now collecting cost reports for the fiscal year ending in 2023. Initial communication and instructions indicate 2023 cost reports are due on August 26, 2024, regardless of fiscal year end date.  The majority of CHCs in Massachusetts are required to file these reports, but some are excluded based on their affiliation and billing relationship with the State.

CHIA has been working with the CHCs, the Massachusetts League of Community Health Centers, and independent consultants to create a new Medicaid cost report, which maximizes efficiency and accuracy while also ensuring a consistent cost of care measurement for medical, behavioral health, and dental services. This new Excel-based cost report template was introduced and released earlier this month and is required to be used for the fiscal year 2023 filing. This will be the first cost report required to be filed with CHIA by CHCs since 2019.

AAFCPAs advises that you not delay and begin familiarizing yourself with the detailed and extensive cost report template, which gathers significant data regarding staffing, visits, other expenses, square footage allocations, and more. Though much of the data is mirrored on the Federally Qualified Health Center Report (Medicare Cost Report), the CHIA report requires more detailed analysis and breakout of data.  AAFCPAs’ Cost Report Team is familiar with the new template and the detailed requirements and is working with clients to prepare, review, and answer questions on the report.

AAFCPAs’ Cost Report Expertise

AAFCPAs has worked diligently to become familiar with the instructions and the most beneficial ways to minimize the effort necessary to prepare while maximizing reporting to properly reflect your true cost of care. Because we serve the vast majority of CHCs in the state, we are able to ensure consistency of costs with peers to avoid outliers. Additionally, our close and respectful working relationship with CHIA aids in our research of complex matters.

Instructions for the 2023 Community Health Center Cost Report, along with the Excel-based template and INET instructions, are available on the CHIA website at https://www.chiamass.gov/community-health-center-cost-reports-2/.

If you have any questions, please contact Pauline Legor, CPA, MBA, at 774.512.4158, plegor@nullaafcpa.com; Courtney McFarland, CPA, MSA at 774.512.4051, cmcfarland@nullaafcpa.com; or your AAFCPAs Partner.