Health Information Compliance Alert

Ever since CMS began asking practices to complete Medicare enrollments using the online PECOS system, physicians have been asking if they can electronically sign their applications to expedite approval. That answer was always no -- until now.

On Feb. 29, CMS announced that PECOS "now allows providers and suppliers to sign Medicare enrollment applications electronically." As long as your individual provider application does not include new reassignments, you can e-sign the application. This new rule applies to both physicians and non-physician practitioners, "including those enrolling just to order and refer," CMS said in the statement.

Practices who don't want to use the e-signature process can opt to use the existing process, which requires you to print and sign the certification statement and mail it to your MAC.

For more on the new e-signature option, visit https://pecos.cms.hhs.gov.

CMS also acknowledged several technical problems regarding the processing of claims using the new 5010 standards, many of which were the fault of the agency -- but one big denial reason has to do with the way practices are reporting physicians' services.

"For physician and practitioner offices, including those that bill Medicare via hardcopy claims, the key to avoiding receipt of the HIPAA compliance error, which prevents crossing over of the affected claims, is to only include a discharge date, when known, if you are billing a Part B claim for services with POS codes 21, 31, 51, or 61," CMS said in a Feb. 29 statement.