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CMS Sends More Detailed Guidance to Providers on COVID-19

Policy Snapshot
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS), Practitioners, Telemedicine
March 12, 2020

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) continues to issue guidance in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. The agency:

Legislation to Address Telehealth in SNFs Introduced In Congress

Policy Snapshot
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS), Practitioners, Telemedicine
March 12, 2020

Last week, Sens. John Thune (R-SD) and Ben Cardin (D-MD), members of the Senate Finance Committee, and Reps. Adrian Smith (R-NE) and Ann Kuster (D-NH) introduced companion versions of the Reducing Unnecessary Senior Hospitalizations (RUSH) Act of 2020—legislation to facilitate greater use of telehealth in skilled nursing facilities (SNFs).

The RUSH Act would allow Medicare to enter into voluntary, value-based arrangements with medical groups to provide acute care to patients in skilled nursing facilities using a combination of telehealth and on-site staff. Working together to...

Quality Payment Program: MIPS 2019 Data Submission Deadline March 31

Policy Snapshot
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS), Payment, Merit-Based Incentive Program Payment System (MIPS), Quality Payment Program (QPP), Practice Management, Practitioners
March 12, 2020

The data submission deadline for Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) eligible clinicians who participated in the 2019 performance period of the Quality Payment Program is March 31 at 8 PM ET. Note: The data submission period for accountable care organizations and pre-registered groups and virtual groups also closes on March 31.

For more information:

HHS/ONC Finalizes Rules to Promote Interoperability/ Patient Access

Policy Snapshot
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS), Electronic Health Records (EHR), Health Information Technology (HIT), Practitioners
March 12, 2020

On March 9, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) finalized two rules that will give patients safer, more secure access to their health data. The two rules, issued by the HHS Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), implement interoperability and patient access provisions of the bipartisan 21st Century Cures Act and support the MyHealthEData initiative. These final rules require both public and private entities to share health information between patients and other parties, while...

CMS Releases New Guidance on COVID-19 in Nursing Homes

Policy Snapshot
Care Settings/Types, Skilled Nursing Care, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS), Infections, Practitioners, Resident
March 5, 2020

This week the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has issued:

Congress Passes Coronavirus Funding Package, Including Waiving Some Medicare Telehealth Restrictions

Policy Snapshot
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS), Practitioners, Telemedicine
March 5, 2020

Congress has passed a coronavirus emergency spending bill that includes provisions waiving certain Medicare telehealth restrictions during the public health emergency. The waivers let qualified Medicare providers offer telehealth services during a coronavirus national emergency to beneficiaries they have seen within the past three years. The services could be offered in geographic areas where such an emergency has been declared.

The bill waives originating site requirements so that beneficiaries can receive the care they need at home. It also waives restrictions on using telephones...

Quality Payment Program: MIPS 2019 Data Submission Period Open through March 31

Policy Snapshot
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS), Payment, Merit-Based Incentive Program Payment System (MIPS), Quality Payment Program (QPP), Practice Management, Practitioners
February 27, 2020

The data submission period is open for Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) eligible clinicians who participated in the 2019 performance period of the Quality Payment Program. Submit and update your data until 8 PM ET on March 31. Please note that the data submission period for accountable care organizations and pre-registered groups and virtual groups also closes on March 31.

For more information:

SNF PDPM Claims Issue

Policy Snapshot
Patient Driven Payment Model (PDPM), Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS), Payment, Practice Management, Practitioners
February 27, 2020

Please note that Skilled Nursing Facility (SNF) Patient Driven Payment Model (PDPM) initial claims that are processed out of sequence are not paying the correct Variable Per Diem (VPD)-adjusted rate. Also, all adjustment claims are not processing correctly. Claims need to process in date of service order for each stay for the VPD to calculate correctly. The issue will be corrected in October. In the interim:

  • Submit claims in sequence by waiting at least two weeks before billing subsequent claims
  • To adjust claims, cancel the initial claim and all subsequent claims
    • ...

Dementia Care: CMS Toolkits Call on March 3

Policy Snapshot
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS), Dementia, Practitioners
February 27, 2020

The National Partnership to Improve Dementia Care in Nursing Homes (NPIDCNH) will hold a call on Tuesday, March 3 from 1:30 to 3 PM ET. During this call, learn about new Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) toolkits for nursing homes:

  • Head-to-toe infection prevention: Easy to access best practices for direct care staff to prevent infections before they occur
  • Developing a
    • ...

Register for the March 3 MIPS Value Pathways (MVPs) Webinar

Policy Snapshot
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS), Payment, Merit-Based Incentive Program Payment System (MIPS), Quality Payment Program (QPP), Practice Management, Practitioners
February 27, 2020

Due to ongoing interest, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is hosting a second webinar on Tuesday, March 3, from 2:00 to 3:00 PM ET to provide an overview of the MIPS Value Pathways (also referred to as MVPs) participation framework, which was outlined in the...