From CMS Press Release: CMS announced today that the Open Payments system is once again available for physicians and teaching hospitals to register, review and, as needed, dispute financial payment information received from health care manufacturers. The system was taken offline on August 3 to resolve a technical issue. To account for system down time, CMS is extending the time for physicians and teaching hospitals to review their records to September 8, 2014. The public website will be … [Read more...]
From CMS: Open Payments System Reopens, Extends Physician Registration and Review Period
August 21, 2014
New ICD-10 Compliance deadline established (again)
August 3, 2014
On Friday, CMS issued a final ruling establishing the new compliance deadline for the transition to ICD-10. The new deadline (as many had guessed/projected) is October 1, 2015. This should allow practices more than ample time to begin preparations (again). Be sure to begin by contacting your EHR vendor to learn about their preparedness and how they will assist in the transition. Read more … [Read more...]
ICD-10 Basics: Unspecified Diagnosis Codes, CPT Codes, and Version 5010 Standards
July 11, 2014
The Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) expects to release a final rule in the near future that will include a new compliance date that would require the use of ICD-10 beginning October 1, 2015. The new compliance date would give providers an extra year to prepare. Now is a great time to brush up on ICD-10 basics as you get ready for the transition. If you missed the June 4 MLN Connects National Provider Call, More ICD-10 Coding Basics, a written transcript and audio recording are … [Read more...]
Report on PQRS measures now
July 5, 2014
If you haven't started participating in the Physician Quality Reporting System (PQRS) for 2014, time is running out to report on quality measures, earn a bonus and avoid penalties. The AOA encourages more ODs to participate in PQRS, which will likely be a key component of any future Medicare payment model. Providers must report accurately on at least nine measures for 50 percent of their applicable patients to receive a 0.5 percent incentive payment in 2015. Those who don't participate at all … [Read more...]
Congress approves one-year Medicare payment fix, extends ICD-10 deadline
April 3, 2014
Congress has issued a yearlong fix to Medicare's physician payment formula, but the fight for a permanent solution is far from over. Medicare's sustainable growth rate formula has threatened automatic payment cuts to Medicare physicians for more than a decade. Congress on multiple occasions has approved temporary "patches" to prevent these reductions from taking effect. The most recent patch had been scheduled to expire on March 31. Averting the cuts once again, House and Senate lawmakers … [Read more...]
New CMS-1500 (02/12) Forms Required as of April 1 for Medicare Claims
March 30, 2014
New CMS Forms Required as of April 1 Starting April 1, 2014, Medicare will accept only the revised version of the form. With the transition to ICD-10 set to take place Oct. 1, 2014, the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has revised the CMS-1500 claim form. The revised form more adequately supports the use of the ICD-10 diagnosis code set. The revised form (version 02/12) replaces the current form, (version 08/05). Medicare began accepting the revised form Jan. 6, … [Read more...]
U.S. House of Representatives Passes Bill on SGR Fix and Delay of ICD-10
March 29, 2014
The U. S. House of Representatives passed a bill Thursday (3/27/14) that would extend a SGR fix for medicare reimbursement for one year. Included in this bill was one sentence provision that would mandate the delay of ICD-10 implementation until October 1, 2015. For this to become law, the U.S. Senate must also adopt and pass the same bill. It remains to be seen if this provision will be included. Until such time, TAOP Third Party Center recommends that Optometric Physician offices' continue to … [Read more...]
