Kentucky FACIS background checks: Levels 1M & 3 explained
A Kentucky-specific breakdown of the FACIS healthcare exclusion search: what Level 1M covers, what Level 3 adds from Kentucky boards and Medicaid enforcement, and which level fits which employer.
Every Kentucky organization that bills a federally funded healthcare program — Medicare, Medicaid, TRICARE, or a state Medicaid managed-care plan — is required to verify that its employees, contractors, and vendors are not excluded from participation. FACIS is the standard tool for that verification. This guide covers what a FACIS search returns in Kentucky and which level fits your workforce.
What is a FACIS background check in Kentucky?
FACIS (Fraud and Abuse Control Information System) is a healthcare-specific sanction database that aggregates federal exclusion and debarment records with state licensing, Medicaid, and Attorney General enforcement data. Run against a Kentucky candidate, a Level 3 FACIS search reaches into the Kentucky Medicaid Sanctioned or Excluded Provider List, the Kentucky Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, and the disciplinary records of every Kentucky healthcare licensing board.
Kentucky sources included in FACIS Level 3
- Kentucky Medicaid Sanctioned or Excluded Provider List
- Kentucky Medicaid Fraud Control Unit enforcement actions
- Kentucky Board of Medicine disciplinary actions
- Kentucky Board of Nursing disciplinary actions
- Kentucky Board of Pharmacy disciplinary actions
- Kentucky dental, behavioral health, and allied-health board actions
- Kentucky Attorney General healthcare-fraud actions
- Kentucky contractor disqualification and debarment lists
Kentucky hiring rules that shape a healthcare screening program
FACIS answers the exclusion question, but a Kentucky healthcare hire also runs into state-specific reporting and inquiry rules. Kentucky follows the FCRA window.
Criminal-history inquiry timing. Governor Bevin's 2017 executive order removed the conviction question from initial state-agency applications. That matters for clinical hiring in Kentucky because a FACIS hit and a county criminal hit often arrive together, and the order in which you may act on them is set by state law, not by the report.
Drug and cannabis testing. SB 47 (2023) created a medical-cannabis program effective Jan 1, 2025. Employer drug-free workplace rights preserved.
Salary history. Louisville Metro Government applies to its own hiring; no statewide rule.
Practical note for Kentucky providers. KSP record-access pathway under KRS §17.150 for licensure roles.
Primary Kentucky citations: KRS §61.300 (state hiring) · SB 47 (2023) · Exec. Order 2017-064
Full detail lives in the Kentucky background check guide.
Federal sources included in every FACIS search
Both Level 1M and Level 3 include the federal exclusion sources that satisfy OIG and CMS baseline requirements for Kentucky providers:
- OIG List of Excluded Individuals and Entities (LEIE)
- System for Award Management (SAM), including SDN
- OFAC Specially Designated Nationals list
- FDA Debarment List
- DEA administrative actions
- GSA excluded parties
- TRICARE excluded providers
- U.S. Department of Justice, Treasury, and State healthcare-fraud actions
FACIS Level 1M vs. Level 3 for Kentucky employers
| Federal exclusion lists | Level 1M ✓ Level 3 ✓ |
| Kentucky Medicaid exclusions | Level 1M ✗ Level 3 ✓ |
| KY licensing board disciplinary actions | Level 1M ✗ Level 3 ✓ |
| Kentucky AG healthcare-fraud actions | Level 1M ✗ Level 3 ✓ |
Which Kentucky employers need Level 3?
If any of the following describe your Kentucky organization, Level 3 is the right search. Level 1M is not enough to see KY board sanctions or Kentucky Medicaid exclusions:
- Kentucky hospitals, health systems, and physician groups
- Skilled nursing, assisted-living, and long-term-care operators in Kentucky
- Home health, hospice, and DME suppliers billing Kentucky Medicaid
- Behavioral health, telehealth, and substance-use providers licensed in Kentucky
- Any employer with clinical staff holding a KY license alongside licenses in other states
How often should Kentucky providers re-screen?
The OIG Special Advisory Bulletin recommends monthly re-screening against the LEIE. Kentucky Medicaid enrollment agreements generally impose the same monthly cadence against the Kentucky Medicaid Sanctioned or Excluded Provider List. A pre-hire FACIS check is the starting point; continuous monthly monitoring is what catches sanctions that land after the hire date.
How SafestHires runs FACIS for Kentucky employers
SafestHires offers FACIS Level 1M and FACIS Level 3 as standalone searches or bundled into a Kentucky healthcare hiring package alongside primary-source license verification, sex-offender registry checks, and county criminal history. Ongoing monthly monitoring is available for the entire workforce from the same dashboard.
FACIS turnaround time for Kentucky employers
A single-name FACIS Level 3 search on a Kentucky candidate typically returns in minutes because most sources are queried via live API. Manual review kicks in only when the search returns a potential match that needs KY board or Kentucky Medicaid-exclusion identifier confirmation before it can be reported. See the SafestHires turnaround guide for a full breakdown of what drives timing across all searches in a Kentucky hire.
Building a complete Kentucky healthcare hiring package
FACIS is the sanction-and-exclusion layer of a healthcare hire, but it is only one component. A complete Kentucky clinical hiring package typically pairs FACIS Level 3 with:
- Primary-source license verification against the Kentucky Board of Medicine, Kentucky Board of Nursing, and Kentucky Board of Pharmacy
- County criminal history for every Kentucky county lived or worked in during the FCRA lookback window
- National sex offender registry and Kentucky-specific abuse/neglect registry lookups
- Employment and education verification, including internship and residency dates
- Drug screening under Kentucky employer policy — 5- or 10-panel lab-based
- Financial Risk Search for Kentucky finance, revenue-cycle, and executive roles with fiduciary duties (bankruptcies, judgments, liens from public records)
See Kentucky background check laws for the state-level rules that shape package design, and the package builder to assemble a Kentucky healthcare package end-to-end.
Frequently asked questions about FACIS in Kentucky
What is the penalty if a Kentucky employer bills for services from an excluded provider?
Under 42 U.S.C. §1320a-7a, civil monetary penalties can reach up to $21,000 per item or service claimed, plus treble damages, plus repayment of every dollar that touched the excluded person's work. State Medicaid Fraud Control Units in Kentucky can pursue additional penalties under state false-claims statutes.
Is a Financial Risk Search recommended for Kentucky healthcare hires?
For clinical roles, FACIS plus primary-source license verification and county criminal history is the compliance-driven baseline. For Kentucky healthcare finance, revenue-cycle, and executive roles with fiduciary responsibility, the SafestHires Financial Risk Search — bankruptcies, civil judgments, and tax liens from public records — is a common add-on to surface public financial-risk indicators before hire.
Does FACIS replace primary-source license verification in Kentucky?
No. FACIS surfaces disciplinary and sanction history, but it does not confirm that a KY license is currently active and in good standing. SafestHires runs primary-source license verification against each Kentucky board alongside FACIS on every clinical hire.