Home Health & Hospice Week

Claims system to get much pickier when new claim form hits. You'll want to start double- and triple-checking your claims to ensure the beneficiary's information is spot-on, or you'll face scores of denials once the new HIPAA 5010 takes effect. That's because the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services plans to deny claims filed on HIPAA 5010 forms on which the beneficiary's name doesn't perfectly match how it's listed on his Medicare I.D. card. (The 5010 will be the new Medicare universal claim form starting in 2012.) "Whenever there is a name suffix, such as 'Jr.' or 'Sr.' abbreviations, etc., it must be included with the last name," said Veronica Harshman of CMS's Division of Medicare Billing Procedures during an April 28 Open Door Forum regarding the eligibility component of the HIPAA 5010 form. You can include the suffix either with the patient's last name or in the suffix field, [...]