CMS News
| For Immediate Release: | Contact: |
| Thursday, June 28, 2001 | CMS Office of Public Affairs 202-690-6145 |
For questions about Medicare please call 1-800-MEDICARE or visit www.medicare.gov. |
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CARROLL COUNTY, MD., RESIDENT HONORED FOR WORK ON PROTECTING MEDICAID PROGRAM
A Carroll County, Md., resident has received an award for her work in helping ensure that health care for Medicaid beneficiaries and taxpayer money are protected.
Donna Schmidt, who lives in Westminster, was selected by Tom Scully, Administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), as employee of the month for June. CMS is the new name for the former U.S. Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA).
A 23-year HCFA employee, Schmidt works as a health insurance specialist for the agency that administers Medicaid and Medicare. Schmidt is one of about 2,800 employees in the agency's Baltimore headquarters.
"Ms. Schmidt's exceptional initiative and diligence helps ensure that poor women, children and other Medicaid beneficiaries receive the health care they need," Scully said. "And her work on fraud and abuse makes sure that taxpayer funds in the Medicaid program are being well-spent."
In her role as a fraud and abuse coordinator, Schmidt works to protect against individuals or organizations conducting illegal or improper activities with the Medicaid managed care program. She is a team member of the National Medicaid Fraud and Abuse Initiative, established in June 1997, to prevent fraudulent Medicaid activities.
Schmidt also was honored for her outstanding work in helping develop a final regulation on Medicaid managed care. The rule, published on Jan. 19, 2001, took into consideration more than 300 responses received after the proposed rule was published in September 1998. She helped produce several sections of the final rule, including a portion on fighting fraud and abuse.
The final rule was scheduled to take effect in April. However, HHS Secretary Tommy G. Thompson has announced a delay in order to give federal officials an opportunity for further review and consideration of new regulations.
Medicaid, a joint federal-state health insurance program, provides medical help for categories of low-income and needy people. Each state operates its own Medicaid program and receives federal matching funds.
"I was just trying to do a good job and I feel honored to have received this award," Schmidt said.
Schmidt began her federal career in 1976 at the Social Security Administration while she was a student at Pikesville Senior High School. After graduation in 1978, she transferred to HCFA where she became a management analyst. In 1996, she began to focus on program policy in managed care and later turned her interests toward program integrity activities. Since 1998, Schmidt has worked with Medicaid state agencies, Medicaid fraud control units, regional offices, the Office of the Inspector General and the Justice Department to assist in identifying and preventing fraud and abuse in Medicaid managed care.
A Baltimore native, Schmidt graduated in 1996 with honors from Catonsville Community College in Baltimore. She is planning to pursue her bachelor's degree in health care policy at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County.
