Industry Note:
CMS Pushes Back First Payment Bundling Deadline
Published on Tue Aug 23, 2011
Introducing bundling across provider types for Medicare payments may take a bit longer than CMS wishes. When announcing the Bundled Payments for Care Improvement initiative (BPCI) in August, CMS set a Sept. 22 deadline for letters of intent on Model 1 (involving inpatient stays only). Now CMS has pushed that date back to Oct. 6, it says in a message to providers. Watch for: Models 2 and 3 in the fourmodel program can involve home care services, and letters of intent for those models are due Nov. 4. CMS hasn't pushed back that deadline yet, but it may do so based on the delay for the first model, experts predict. CMS "has received much interest and a large number of inquiries about the [BCPI] initiative," the agency notes in the message. "There have also been many requests to allow for some additional time to prepare applications for Model 1."