Comments on: A New World Coming Monday! http://www.fimed.com/blog/2010/03/01/a-new-world-coming-monday-4/ The Pulse of Your Practice Wed, 08 Feb 2012 21:22:14 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Fi-Med Management, Inc » Better News For The Physician Fee Schedule http://www.fimed.com/blog/2010/03/01/a-new-world-coming-monday-4/comment-page-1/#comment-207 Fi-Med Management, Inc » Better News For The Physician Fee Schedule Fri, 12 Mar 2010 17:00:24 +0000 http://www.fimed.com/?p=1056#comment-207 [...] A New World Coming Monday! [...] [...] A New World Coming Monday! [...]

]]> By: Paul Spencer, CPC, CPC-H http://www.fimed.com/blog/2010/03/01/a-new-world-coming-monday-4/comment-page-1/#comment-164 Paul Spencer, CPC, CPC-H Mon, 01 Mar 2010 16:23:20 +0000 http://www.fimed.com/?p=1056#comment-164 Actually, by law, CMS can only hold claims for 10 business days. CMS took this step in the hopes that Congress will approve a pay fix that will not saddle physicians with the 21.3% pay cut. The CMS hold only affects services with a date of March 1, 2010 and after. Claims with dates of service prior to this date will be processed using the existing temporary fee schedule that has been effect since January 1st. Actually, by law, CMS can only hold claims for 10 business days. CMS took this step in the hopes that Congress will approve a pay fix that will not saddle physicians with the 21.3% pay cut.

The CMS hold only affects services with a date of March 1, 2010 and after. Claims with dates of service prior to this date will be processed using the existing temporary fee schedule that has been effect since January 1st.

]]> By: Michelle Patrick http://www.fimed.com/blog/2010/03/01/a-new-world-coming-monday-4/comment-page-1/#comment-163 Michelle Patrick Mon, 01 Mar 2010 13:58:35 +0000 http://www.fimed.com/?p=1056#comment-163 By law, under normal circumstances, electronic claims sent in to Medicare aren’t allowed to be paid for 14 days anyway. Medicare can't pay them until at least the second half of the month, with or without the hold. What is different is then is that Medicare also won’t be processing claims in the first half of the month, ahead of sending out the payments. If it were to process them, would the pay cut (if it goes through) effect those claims in que once the hold is released? This hold will create a backlog, anyone recall summer of 2008? Would that further mean that this hold is nothing more than smokescreen as it effectively does nothing. The A/R of physicians will have then received two more stones to carry around their necks for claims in que. This is a federal law. Even Congress can't change that law. However, given the choice perhaps for those physicians that have a large demographic of Medicare patients this is best of two evils. By law, under normal circumstances, electronic claims sent in to Medicare aren’t allowed to be paid for 14 days anyway. Medicare can’t pay them until at least the second half of the month, with or without the hold. What is different is then is that Medicare also won’t be processing claims in the first half of the month, ahead of sending out the payments. If it were to process them, would the pay cut (if it goes through) effect those claims in que once the hold is released?

This hold will create a backlog, anyone recall summer of 2008?

Would that further mean that this hold is nothing more than smokescreen as it effectively does nothing. The A/R of physicians will have then received two more stones to carry around their necks for claims in que.

This is a federal law. Even Congress can’t change that law. However, given the choice perhaps for those physicians that have a large demographic of Medicare patients this is best of two evils.

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