The payment disruptions caused by HIPAA 5010 transition have now grown so severe that the Medical Group Management Association (MGMA) has reached over CMS’ head to plea for help.

A pointed letter to HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius requested “immediate action to address…considerable cash flow problems for physicians and their practices” that “are being reported with both Medicare Administrative Contractors (MACs) and commercial plans.”

How would you feel if CMS had a direct line into your wallet and took out money every time it felt you were overpaid? Well, you're in luck, because neither technology nor law has gone that far. Instead, CMS is giving you a direct debit option that allows the agency to withdraw funds from your bank account and avoid interest on overpayments starting July 1, according to Transmittal 7688 that was released Jan. 27.

As it is now, your Medicare Administrative Contractor (MAC) begins recouping overpayments 41 days from the date of the initial demand letter. If you don’t pay the debt in full within 30 days of receiving the letter, interest accrues on the overpayment.

CMS’ Electronic Health Record (EHR) Incentive Program turned one year old earlier this month, and CMS celebrated the milestone by showing off a few statistics on the success of the program as well as introducing some tools for eligible providers.

Among the stats:

• Forty-three states started Medicaid EHR Incentive Programs.

Make sure you’re not missing out on a 10% bonus payment this year if you live in a health professional shortage area (HPSA). Check out CMS’ updated list of ZIP codes that qualify as geographic HPSAs in 2012.

Prompt payment discounts are an intriguing option to offer patients to get them to pay up, especially in the midst of high-deductible season. But are they legal?

 Many states have laws about how you can bill people for medical services. It's a fertile area for legal analysis. And of course it gets more complicated when Medicare gets involved.

OIG has suggested in the past that routine waivers of co-payments are a form of fraud. On the same principle, might not a reduced bill for prompt payment also be illegal.