The Complexity of Healthcare Compliance

Healthcare is one of the most heavily regulated industries in the United States, governed by overlapping state, local, and federal regulations. These regulations are constantly evolving, requiring organizations to remain vigilant and adaptive. DocGo’s approach to compliance is built on a strong foundation – identifying potential risks before they become issues.

“Compliance is always changing,” Stephen explained. “It’s important that we relentlessly pursue compliance best practices, and we do that by paying close attention to government guidance and enforcement trends, and by joining professional associations so we can learn best practices from our peers.”

DocGo’s compliance infrastructure (including staffing, policies, procedures, and committees) is designed to closely follow evolving federal standards. For example, when the U.S. government published a new framework for evaluating program effectiveness, DocGo proactively incorporated this framework into its own self-enforced risk assessments, well before a government agency would likely require such action.

One of DocGo’s core commitments is fostering a strong internal culture around compliance. The company actively seeks input from partners, employees, and staff to identify areas of concern. They’ve even developed a compliance superhero, “Captain Integrity.” Through a mix of educational cartoons, company surveys, and team meetings, Captain Integrity helps keep the message fresh. Compliance is also deeply involved in new employee onboarding and employees are regularly re-trained on the importance of compliance.

Damaris emphasized the importance of this approach: “The annual compliance survey really does provide employees with an additional avenue to report concerns. On occasion, people may not feel comfortable bringing issues forward unless specifically asked. This survey allows us to address these concerns head-on.” It also serves as an adjunct to DocGo’s compliance hotline, which is managed by an independent 3rd party vendor to preserve callers’ anonymity.

This culture extends to the Compliance Ambassador Committee, which Stephen formed and Damaris oversees. This Committee ensures that compliance has deep access to every part of the organization, embedding its role into strategic decision-making rather than treating it as an afterthought.

“Teams will approach us and ask, ‘How do we get from point A to point B compliantly?’ That culture of proactivity keeps things running smoothly,” says Damaris.

One of the structural strengths of DocGo’s compliance program is its independence, both as a unit and within the department. “Steve Jobs said it best: ‘It doesn’t make sense to hire smart people and tell them what to do; we hire smart people so they can tell us what to do’. One of the qualities that makes our compliance department particularly successful is that I hire people smarter than myself, within their areas of expertise,” Stephen says.

Stephen reports directly to the Board of Directors, with a dotted line to the CEO, ensuring the compliance department can operate with true autonomy. “At organizations that have immature compliance programs, you may see compliance departments rolled into other teams or programs, and that prevents them from being effective. The best programs have standalone, empowered compliance programs with an independent infrastructure.”

This independence is critical. As Stephen explains, “Compliance programs are only successful if they’re well-resourced. We’re fortunate that our board has invested in compliance; in staffing and tools. It’s important that boards and CEOs understand the value of compliance and enable the team to be successful.”

DocGo’s compliance approach is deeply connected to its mission: high quality, highly accessible, health care for all. This alignment helps the team stay focused, even as regulations shift. “When a company has a pure mission, it’s less of a stretch to have a good compliance program,” Stephen reflected. “If you’re true to your core and follow the right policies and procedures, it’s easy to meet rules and regulations, even evolving ones.”

As DocGo continues to expand, its compliance team remains committed to its mission of proactive, patient-centered care. With a clear structure, strong leadership, and a deep connection to the company’s core values, DocGo is well-positioned to navigate the complex world of healthcare compliance.

“Ultimately, people want to do the right thing,” Stephen concludes. “Our job is to make that as easy as possible.”