The Medicare, Medicaid, and SCHIP Benefits Improvement and Protection Act (BIPA) of 2000 included provisions aimed at improving the Medicare appeals process. Part of these provisions mandate that all second-level appeals, also known as reconsiderations, be conducted by Qualified Independent Contractors (QICs). Please visit this site for more information on QICs.
For additional information, please visit: http://www.medicare.gov/Basics/finalqicfactsheet.pdf