Home Health & Hospice Week

Only one CMS educational event is updated with the new requirements.

Home care providers may not be happy about Medicare’s level of training on the face-to-face requirement for physicians. However, you can take advantage of offerings from the Centers for Med-icare & Medicaid Services and others that will help you drive home your point with referral sources:

• The 2015 home health prospective payment system final rule that finalizes these requirements: https://federalregister.gov/a/2014-26057, the F2F section starts on p. 8 of the PDF file.
• A 1.5-hour MLN Matters education call that starts at 1:30 p.m. ET on Dec. 16, “Certifying Patients for the Medicare Home Health Benefit.” It has a target audience of “physicians who certify patients for the Medicare home health benefit, hospital/Skilled Nursing Facility discharge planners, non-physician practitioners who are allowed to perform Medicare home health face-to-face encounters, and home health agencies,” CMS says in a notice about the call. You and your referral sources can register for the event at www.eventsvc.com/blhtechnologies.
• Some Medicare Administrative Contractors are offering educational calls on the topic for physicians. For example, in a Dec. 19 session, a National Government Services clinical educator “will provide specific instruction regarding documentation when ordering home health services for Medicare beneficiaries to ensure documents provided by physicians meet CMS regulations,” the MAC says in a message to providers. “This 90-minute session will include information regarding orders, an initial plan of care, and face-to-face encounter documents.” Register for the session at https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/160556865.
• A recording of an Eli-sponsored audioconference by BKD’s Mark Sharp, “The 2015 HHA PPS Update: Prepare for More Challenges,” is available for purchase at www.audioeducator.com/home-health/2015-hha-pps-update-11-25-2014.html. The session reviews the entire PPS rule.

These offerings review current F2F requirements — many of which remain the same in 2015:

• MLN Matters SE1405: Documentation Requirements for Home Health Prospective Payment System (HH PPS) Face-to-Face Encounter: www.cms.gov/Outreach-and-Education/Medicare-Learning-Network-MLN/MLNMattersArticles/downloads/se1405.pdf. The article “explains what constitutes a sufficient face-to-face encounter narrative and includes several examples,” CMS notes in the rule. While this will help with episodes that end prior to Jan. 1, it won’t help explain the new requirements.
• CMS Q&As on F2F and physician certification of eligibility: www.cms.gov/Medicare/Medicare-Fee-for-Service-Payment/HomeHealthPPS/Downloads/Home-Health-Questions-Answers.pdf.
• Links to more F2F-related MLN Matters articles are in the “Spotlights” Face-To-Face section at www.cms.gov/Center/Provider-Type/Home-Health-Agency-HHA-Center.html.
• Palmetto GBA made the first of its “Health Information Supply Chain Series” education Youtube videos on the topic of F2F. See the 4-minute video by Palmetto medical director Harry Felici-ano, posted Nov. 12, at www.youtube.com/watch?v=LOeacNPxSB0.