Home Health & Hospice Week

The pending elimination of the face-to-face physician narrative requirement hasn’t helped home health agency claims caught up in a recent Palmetto GBA review targeting claims with 11 to 13 therapy visits.

The HHH Medicare Administrative Con-tractor reviewed more than 4,500 claims with HIPPS code 1BGP* processed in the February-to-April time period, the MAC says in a new article on its website. The four regions that underwent review saw denial rates ranging from 35 to 39 percent.

“Face-to-face requirements not met” was the overwhelming reason for the full and partial denials in every region, Palmetto notes. F2F accounted for 64 to 71 percent of the denial reasons, varying by region.

CMS has not said whether it will make the narrative elimination retroactive, if finalized. But a CMS official at this month’s Home Health Open Door Forum said the agency is thinking about the issue (see Eli’s HCW, Vol. XXIII, No. 25).