Who's knocking at the door? The IRS issues new audit guidelines

The IRS is arming its agents with a detailed blueprint for exemption audits and has announced that it is stepping up the number of examinations it will undertake. A spokesman for the IRS recently announced that the service is not actively seeking to revoke exemptions. However, this statement offers only partial comfort. Merely increasing audit activity and the depth of the examinations will mean more time and expense for hospital administrators regardless of the outcome. The moral of this story is clear: Things will get tougher when the IRS auditor knocks on your door, and the likelihood of that knock has increased. As I stated in my previous Trustee article (see Health Law, p.10, January issue), hospital trustees and administrators need to get their houses in order. Your hospital should be imposing these audit guidelines on itself before an IRS examining agent does it for you. My earlier article sets forth specific suggestions in this regard. Recent developments--including the new IRS guidelines--only emphasize the importance of preparing for the IRS.