EAS IV: Steps to Improve MEPRS Data Tri-Service MEPRS Conference National Conference Center, Lansdowne, VA July 2008

2 Agenda EAS IV Processing Overview Account Subset Definition (ASD) Table Table Migration Data Set Maintenance –Setting up Include/Exclude Lists –Data Set Business Rules Table (standard) –MTF Business Rules Table (site-specific) –Impacts Data Set Migration Common Issues – Financial, Personnel, Workload, and Allocation Conclusion

3 EAS IV Processing Overview ECU Adjustments Allocation Financial Data STANFINS (Army) STARS/FL (Navy) MicroBAS (Air Force) – This source file comes from CRIS Personnel Data UCAPERS (Army) SPMS (Navy) EAS PW (Air Force) DMHRSi (Tri-Service) Workload CHCS (Tri-Service) WMNS-A (Army) Validation Checks Error Correction Unit (ECU) Allocation Adjustments Audit Trail Audit Trail Allocation Reports MHS EAS IV Repository System Interfaces No Exceptions Exceptions

4 Account Subset Definition Table Road map of the MEPRS Program at an MTF Identifies the work centers and expense accounts used by an MTF during a fiscal year Determines the sequence or order in which step-down expense assignment occurs (ASN) Defines the statistics (raw or weighted) and data used in the step-down and purification processes Directs workload, expenses, and the step-down process Directs expense assignment processing

5 Account Subset Definition Table Can add or update work center accounts. Delete records entered in error. If a D or E account is added, an Assignment Sequence Number (ASN) must be entered. Codes given the same ASN step-down in alphabetical order with codes ending in numbers stepping down before alpha characters. Example: EBC5, EBCA, EBCB, etc.

6 Account Subset Definition Table Activation and deactivation dates can be entered for current and prior fiscal years. May add a temporary inactive date range for a work center that is temporarily closed to avoid associating costs to the corresponding FCC. To deactivate a current year FCC, it must be at least one day after the activation date but cannot be before the beginning of the current fiscal year. If a deactivation date was entered in error, delete the deactivation date.

7 Account Subset Definition Table Highlight the deactivation date and hit the delete button on the keyboard to clear out the date. Then click on the OK button Click the radio button next to the code that you want to remove the deactivation date and select the update button.

8 Account Subset Definition Table User is taken to this screen and clicks the Back to ASD button. Deactivation date is removed.

9 Account Subset Definition Table If the FCC does not have a reactivation date, the end date defaults to the end of the fiscal year.

10 Account Subset Definition Table To add another inactivation date, select the dates and click add. Once added, the new date range appears in the Inactive date range window. Click OK.

11 Account Subset Definition Table May delete one or all temporary inactive date ranges that no longer apply to the FCC or were entered in error. Shows as 2 separate records on the ASD Table but it is really only one. It is NOT a duplicate record.

12 Account Subset Definition Table Second inactive date range is removed.

13 Table Migration ASD records mapped to deactivated DMIS IDs or deactivated 3rd Level FCCs do not roll forward to the new FY ASD Table. MTF Data Set records that contain deactivated DMIS IDs or FCCs that map to deactivated 3rd Level FCCs will roll forward to the new FY. Site users should review their MTF Data Set Table for the new FY and remove instances of deactivated codes.

14 ASD Activation and Deactivation Scenarios Scenario 1: Table Migration has already occurred, you are processing in the current FY, you just found out that an FCC should have been activated in Sep 07. What should you do to allow processing in both the previous and current fiscal years? 1.Add the FCC to the Previous Year’s ASD Table by selecting FY Enter the correct Activation date. 3.Add the code to the Current Year’s ASD Table by selecting FY Enter an Activation date for the first day of FY 2008, 10/01/ Call the help desk to have the duplicate code removed.

15 ASD Activation and Deactivation Scenarios Scenario 2: An FCC was deactivated in FY 2007 and reactivated in FY 2008 but table migration has already occurred for FY 2008 and therefore the record did not roll forward. What should you do to allow processing in the current fiscal year? 1.Leave the FY 2007 record alone. 2.Add the FCC to the Current Year’s ASD Table by selecting FY Enter an Activation date for the first day of FY 2008, 10/01/ Call the help desk to have the duplicate code removed. 5.Remove the deactivation date on the remaining record.

16 ASD Activation and Deactivation Scenarios Scenario 3: An FCC was deactivated in FY 2007 when it should have been inactivated instead. What should you do to continue processing correctly in the current fiscal year? 1.Delete the deactivation date. DO NOT add another record. 2.Enter the inactivate date range. If a new record was already added erroneously, 3.Delete the new record before processing any data using that FCC. 4.Select the record on the ASD Table and click on the Delete button. If data was NOT processed against the FCC, system will allow the delete function to complete. If data was processed against the FCC, system will NOT allow the delete function to complete. In the latter situation, a help desk call will need to be placed if the duplicate record cannot be removed by site personnel.

17 Data Set Maintenance TMA and Service representatives define and update the standard business rules each fiscal year. These are centrally distributed and cannot be updated by the site user.

18 Data Set Business Rules Table

19 Data Set Maintenance Ancillary (D), Support Services (E), and Cost Pool (__X_) accounts allow the user to update the data set business rules. The use of this function will further limit the standard business rules and expense distribution to only those accounts that the work center supports.

20 Data Set Maintenance Function is used to limit expense distribution to only the accounts that the work center supports. If the data set is not customized, accounts pointed to standard data set IDs will distribute to every account on the data set. This is particularly bad for accounts that use the standard Data Set ID of FTEs. Typically more efficient, if possible, to use the DMIS ID includes list and/or a partial FCC list.

21 Data Set Maintenance Click the New << button. Add the FCC Include/Exclude codes and the DMIS ID Include/Exclude codes, as appropriate, for each ancillary, support services, and cost pool account.

22 Data Set Maintenance FCCs with a standard Data Set ID of FTE cannot change the default data set.

23 Data Set Maintenance FCCs with standard Data Set IDs (with the exception of FTE) can change the default data set. If the default data set ID is changed, the user will have to manually enter the workload for the data set in Workload Adjustments.

24 Data Set Maintenance Underscores are positional characters and can be used to designate the spacing of the alpha or numeric character in the FCC, i.e., __X_ represents all cost pools. The percentage sign (%) is a wildcard character and is used to represent any alpha or numeric character, i.e., B% represents all FCCs beginning with the letter B.

25 Data Set Maintenance After all data sets have been set up for the fiscal year, print the MTF Data Set Table under the Reports Menu, Site-specific Tables. Review each cost pool, ancillary, and support services account: –Ensure that they only include those work centers that they support. –Ensure that deactivated codes have been removed from current data sets. –Ensure that newly activated codes have been included on data sets, where appropriate.

26 MTF Data Set Table

27 Impact of Data Set Business Rules Drives the validation rules in the ECU Drives the Add function dropdown lists in Adjustments (note the user still has access to adjust an existing FCC/DMIS ID so that workload data can be zeroed out if necessary) Used to create the Allocation Ratios If not set-up correctly…. –Expenses may be allocated to incorrect accounts, particularly the accounts that map to the Standard Data Set IDs (FTE, Total Visits, Sq Ft, etc.) –Service unit costs will be inaccurate

28 Data Set Migration Data Set Migration at beginning of Fiscal Year (FY) –Data sets roll forward from the end of one FY to the beginning of the next FY by carrying over the referential data and in some cases the statistical amount. –Square footage, square footage cleaned, EAC* (Dental Depreciation), EAD* (Special Programs Depreciation), and EAE* (Medical Readiness Depreciation) data sets roll forward with the statistical amounts from the last month processed in the previous FY. The statistical amount is applied to all 12 months in the new FY.

29 Common Issues - Financial EAS IV will not decrement the previous month’s net month expense/obligation records automatically. Why? –It may be a partial amount on the existing record that needs to move to another account. –EAS IV does not know in which month(s) to decrement the partial amount. If the user deducts all or a partial amount from an existing financial record from the current or previous month’s expenses/obligations, they must also ensure that the new record(s) is updated, as appropriate.

30 Common Issues - Financial If the user transfers expenses to a record that did not exist in the source system file and later re-imports the file transferring the expense again, the record receiving the expenses may require an adjustment. Do not report Expenses for Deactivated Accounts

31 Common Issues - Personnel Do not report Salary Expenses, Assigned FTEs, or Nonavailable Workhours/FTEs for Contractor or Volunteer Personnel Do not report GME (EBEA) or GDE (EBIA) unless officially authorized Do not report physician time in DJ accounts Mismatched Personnel Records are received from the Personnel source systems and/or entered in EAS IV, i.e., SUEE does not match BS/L, Personnel Category does not match SUEE and/or BS/L. According to DoD M, workcenters should report at least 16 available hours per month to be classified separately.

32 Common Issues - Workload Inpatient Cost Pool data sets: Allocates based on weighted statistical amount; weighted value for inpatient accounts is always the raw value times 1,440 Claims Billed data set: ‘A’ Accounts received from WAM; ‘B’ Accounts entered from Third Party Outpatient Collections System Report. Sometimes manual entries are not made. EIAA reported on EIB Meals Served data set does not match total raw value on EIAA Meals Served data set Discrepancies in Sq Footage and Sq Footage Cleaned values. Typically, Sq footage cleaned values should be equal to or less than the square footage values. Exception: When post/base provides the facility and the MTF provides the housekeeping contract.

33 Common Issues - Workload Not all accounts being reported that are active on the ASD Table on the following data sets: –F ACCT RAW PROC (FCC Include: FAC_, FAF_, FBI_, FBJ_, FBK_, FEA_, FEC_, FEF_) –F ACCT WTD PROC (FCC Include: FAA, FAB, F_X) Reporting year-to-date expenses on the EEAA dataset instead of net month expenses If you are a clinic, Outpatient and Total Visits data set should equal. NOTE: E0054 exception code is not working. If not a clinic, compare Outpatient and Total Visits data sets to ensure visits are equal to or higher on the Total Visits data set.

34 Common Issues - Workload Ancillary Accounts: –Data sets requiring Raw and Wtd values: Sometimes not reporting both. –Reporting the same values for Raw and Weighted statistical amounts on data sets where the raw and weighted represent different things (number of procedures vs. weighted procedure; number of patients vs. minutes of service) –Reversing the raw and weighted amounts on a data set –DFA (Anesthesiology) vs. DFB (Surgical Suite): Sometimes FCCs reported in DFB not reported on DFA. Exceptions do apply but should be validated (E0059). –DFB (Surgical Suite) vs. DFC (PACU): Sometimes FCCs reported in DFB not reported on DFC. Exceptions do apply but should be validated. –Weighted workload reported on an ancillary cost pool data set should match the total weighted workload for the codes being reported on the data set, e.g., If DAXA/DMIS data set reports DAAA and DAAB, the weighted values reported on the DAXA/DMIS data set should be the total weighted value reported for DAAA/DMIS and DAAB/DMIS data sets

35 Common Issues - Workload Providing FCC/DMIS ID combination includes itself only on the data set as a requesting account Reporting the same values from month to month on a data set Reporting a value of 1 for an account (typically AAAA or BAAA) on a data set to get by an allocation error Reporting workload for deactivated accounts

36 Common Issues - Allocation Workload Reported without Available FTEs - Need to Address Warnings: –E Ancillary Wkld Reported w/o Avail FTEs –E Non Ancillary Wkld Reported w/o Avail FTEs Check Expense Allocated Report to ensure all D, E, and Cost Pool accounts have zero expenses in the ‘Total’ column – prior to transmitting. If expenses exist, this means there are unallocated expenses. Do not change any data after Allocation. If any data are changed, Allocation must be rerun before Transmitting or the site data will not match the EAS IV Repository data.

37 Common Issues - Allocation Situation 1: D or E Account with a cost pool on it in which the accounts that comprise the cost pool are closed accounts. Expenses will go to the cost pool without a means to step them down. Exception code E0092 does not catch this type of error because the cost pool has the FTEs to step down, it is just that the accounts within the cost pool are already closed. Action Taken: SCR written to add another edit during preallocation validation after the Step Down Support Services Expense Data and Distribute Ancillary Expense Data allocation steps are performed, before calculating the Service Unit Costs.

38 Common Issues - Allocation Scenario 2: D or E accounts report workload to itself only. For instance, Data set DHAA/DMIS ID reported only DHAA with a workload value. Again, the Exception code E0092 does not catch this type of error because DHAA has the workload to step down. Since DHAA cannot allocate to itself, the expenses remain with the DHAA account and unallocated expenses remain. Action Taken: SCR written to add another edit during preallocation validation so that it is caught upfront with the edits like workload/no FTEs, expenses/no workload, etc. Site Action Needed: Review Data Set Accepted Report particularly for manually entered D and E accounts to ensure data set is NOT reporting workload for itself only.

39 Common Issues - Allocation Scenario 3: D, E, or cost pool account has a negative expense going into Allocation. Currently, EAS has exception codes for Pre-Allocation that should pick up expenses without workload (E0045 and E0074), however, these exceptions are only generated when the expense is greater than zero. Action Taken: SCR written to add another edit during preallocation validation so that it is caught upfront with the edits like workload/no FTEs, expenses/no workload, etc. Site Action Needed: Review Expense Allocated Report prior to transmitting data to the EAS IV Repository to ensure D, E, and cost pool accounts have zero expenses remaining. If expenses remain, look at the workload reported.

40 Conclusion Be Proactive –Review and update your ASD Table prior to the end of the FY to ensure deactivate codes do not roll forward –Review the ASD and MTF Data Set Tables at the beginning of a new FY prior to processing any data –As codes are being added, ensure MTF Data Set business rules are addressed Understand and refine the EAS IV Business Rules –Minimizes data processing errors –Improves data quality –Ensures correct expense distribution –Provides “Realistic” service unit costs Understand proper correction methods –Data set entry and what to look for –Impacts to Allocation