CMS Revises 2021 Remote Patient Monitoring Rules, Issues Correction

CMS just issued a correction to its guidance on 2021 Medicare rules for remote physiologic monitoring (RPM) services. The correction is effective January 1, 2021 and revises the preamble commentary in the…

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CMS Defines “Reasonable and Necessary” Medicare Coverage

CMS has codified how it defines “reasonable and necessary” coverage for items and services that may be covered under Medicare Parts A and B in a new final rule. The…

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CMS Details Medicare Payment for New COVID-19 Antibody Drug

Just a day after the FDA approved the emergency use of a new COVID-19 antibody drug, CMS updated Medicare payment and billing policies to ensure providers have access to the…

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OIG calls on CMS to improve consistency in reviews

Medicare contractors were inconsistent in how they reviewed overpayments during the appeals process, says the Office of Inspector General in a new report.  Although MACs and QICs generally reviewed appealed…

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The Demise of the Medicare Inpatient-Only List – The Myths and Facts

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services are proposing to eliminate the inpatient-only list over the next three years. Medicare’s often-misunderstood inpatient-only list may soon be departing, as the Centers for…

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CMS to Boost Outpatient Reimbursement, Remove Inpatient Only List

Medicare outpatient payments are slated to increase by 2.6 percent next year, a $7.5 billion boost compared to 2020, according the proposed 2021 Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS) rule. Released…

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Underutilization of ICD-10-CM Z Codes for Medicare Beneficiaries

CMS report is based on 2016-2017 data. It’s been two years since the American Hospital Association (AHA) shouted from the rooftops that documentation by any interprofessional team would be accepted…

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Important Message from Medicare Not Clear

CMS’s IMM sends mixed messages to providers. The Important Message from Medicare (IMM) has changed significantly in its latest reiteration, and the IMM now must be presented to both Medicare…

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E/M prep: Avoid these pitfalls in move to new office-visit codes

New Medicare office-visit coding guidelines take effect Jan. 1, 2021, and are designed to be more intuitive and make unnecessary documentation tasks go away. Experts believe the transition will be…

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