Eli's Hospice Insider

Doc number no longer a strict requirement, according to transmittal.

For hospices that have been struggling to get attending physicians’ NPIs on their patients’ Notices of Election, a reissued transmittal may give you some breathing room.

In CR 9114 issued April 3, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services indicated that hospices had to include the attending physician’s NPI on the claim. In a version of the CR reissued in May, CMS says the NOE should include “the individual’s designated attending physician (if any). Information identifying the attending physician recorded on the election statement should provide enough detail so that it is clear which physician or Nurse Practitioner (NP) was designated as the attending physician. This information should include, but is not limited to, the attending physician’s full name, office address, NPI number, or any other detailed information to clearly identify the attending physician” (emphasis added).

See the reissued CR at Guidance/Guidance/Transmittals/Downloads/R209BP.pdf.