Home Health & Hospice Week

While some providers have tucked ICD-10 readiness into the backs of their minds, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services wants to keep it in the forefront of yours. Although the ICD-10 utilization deadline isn't until Oct. 1, 2013, CMS continues to remind providers that preparation now will prevent desperation in 2013. To that end, CMS has introduced a free service that allows you to receive an e-mail notification whenever the information on its ICD-10 page is updated. Therefore, when the agency announces an ICD-10 webinar, transcript, article, or tip sheet, you'll get a notification via e-mail to check the site for more information.

Most recently, the site posted an executive summary of its April 27 ICD-10 vendor conference. Despite confidence in their readiness, vendors expressed concern "that there is no testing period for ICD-10 prior to the Oct. 1, 2013 implementation deadline." Vendors were eager to hear about what the payers are doing to prepare for ICD-10, because any snags on the MAC side could slow payments to providers.

In addition, vendors noted that medical providers -- particularly those in small- to mid-sized organizations -- aren't focusing on ICD-10 yet. But the vendors strongly felt that providers should prepare now for the transition, because "if you do not comply, you will not be paid."

CMS has also posted 10 new frequently asked questions about ICD-10. One of the FAQs stresses that providers need to be ready by the Oct. 1, 2013 deadline. "There will be no delays and no grace period," CMS says in FAQ 10020.

The FAQs are at www.cms.gov/ICD10  -- select the "Medicare Fee-for-Service Provider Resources" link on the left side of the page, scroll down the page to the "Related Links Inside CMS" section, and select "ICD-10 FAQs."

For more information on ICD-10, visit www.cms.gov/ICD10/02b_Latest_News.asp.