Part B News | Editors' Blog

by: Charles Fiegl Jan 13, 2011

CMS has suggested the following timeline for ICD-10 implementation at physician practices:

Phase 1: January 2009 to June 2011
Phase 2: January 2011 to June 2013
Phase 3: January 2013 to September 2013
Phase 4: October 2013 to December 2014

The timing and length of each phase depends on the size and scope of each practice, and you can expect some overlap between the phases, CMS says.

CMS delays requirement for signatures on labs

by: Grant Huang Jan 10, 2011

CMS is freezing a rule that would require your physicians and non-physician providers (NPPs) to sign requisitions for lab tests. This requirement, introduced in the 2011 Physician Fee Schedule (PFS) final rule, was to take effect Jan. 1, 2011 and would've applied to all lab tests paid under the clinical laboratory fee schedule. We covered this issue of lab signatures in a recent edition of the NPP Report.

More on AWV, end-of-life care planning

by: Charles Fiegl Jan 10, 2011

CMS has gone through an expedited rule making process to remove the voluntary end-of-life care provision from annual wellness visits (AWV). Part B News subscribers can read our full coverage of this story, but here is CMS's full explanation for why it is scrubbing end-of-life care from the services.

"... we published the proposed rule entitled 'Medicare Program; Payment Policies Under the Physician Fee Schedule and Other Revisions to Part B for CY 2011.' In response to this publication, we received comments from health care providers, and others urging us to add voluntary advance care planning as a specified element of the definitions of both the 'first annual wellness visit' and the 'subsequent annual wellness visit.' The commenters stated that their recommendations were based upon a number of recent research studies, and the inclusion by the Medicare initial preventive physical examination (IPPE) provisions of a similar element in the existing IPPE benefit.

CMS updates price for 90656 on ASP list

by: Charles Fiegl Jan 6, 2011

CMS has revised its price for 90656 (Flu vaccine no preserv 3 & >). The code will now pay $12.375, which is the same amount paid during the code during the fourth quarter in 2010. An earlier version of CMS's average sales price (ASP) plus 6% payment system listed the price at $14.001.

Report: White House cuts end-of-life plan from AWV

by: Charles Fiegl Jan 5, 2011

A New York Times report says the Obama administration is removing the end-of-life care planning component to the new annual wellness visit (AWV) service.

The end-of-life plan, which is voluntary and requires patient consent, is just one of several parts to the service. The planning was added in the finalized 2011 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule, but it was not included in the proposed rule released in July.

Robert Gibbs, the White House press secretary, said on Wednesday that this prevented the public from commenting on the provision during the rulemaking process.

CMS and HHS would not comment on the report Wednesday morning. Also, CMS had not issued any guidance on removing the component to the service.

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