One of the seven steps to an effective compliance plan is to develop effective lines of communication. While it is important to foster open lines of communication within your practice, many employees may fear retribution. Hence, they may feel more comfortable reporting complaints anonymously or at least to a third party vendor. Fortunately, providing an outside reporting mechanism such as the hotline offered by Compliance Hotline is an extremely cost effective solution. Within this article we will address some of the benefits of outsourcing your compliance hotline.

I. Minimize Risk by Fostering Confidential Reporting

Under Sarbanes-Oxley, certain whistleblowers are protected from employer retaliation for reporting instances of fraud. This provision permits an employee to file a complaint with the Secretary of Labor if he is discriminated against for “blowing the whistle.” However, many employees may not be educated about this law, or may still fear retribution. Therefore, they may not file a report to an internal department. By providing an outside confidential report line, like Compliance Hotline, your employees will be more comfortable reporting issues. You will also become aware of any lurking issues within your practice more quickly.

II. Protect your Practice from Fraud and Liability with the Compliance Hotline 

According to the Association of Certified Fraud Examiner’s “2014 Report to the Nations,” tips are the most common mode of detecting fraud cases within organizations. Tips have a 42.2% fraud identification rate. Management reviews and internal audits follow as the second and third best detection methods. They have 16% and 14.1% identification rates, respectively.

Companies that utilized hotlines reported that 51% of fraud cases were reported as tips. However, only 15.2% of cases were discovered through internal audits, and merely 2.5% of cases were detected through surveillance/monitoring. Companies who did not provide hotlines had more abysmal numbers, identifying only 33.3% of fraud cases through tips, 13.2% through internal audits, and only 1.7% through surveillance/monitoring.

ComplianceHotline powered by Exclusion Screening, LLC is a cost effective way to ferret out and minimize fraud within your practice. Contact us today at 1-800-294-0952 or online for a free consultation so that you can resolve any potential fraud issues before they get out of hand.

Ashley Hudson, Associate Attorney at Liles Parker, LLP and former Chief Operating Officer for Exclusion Screening, LLC, is the author of this article.