OASIS Alert

If you're a new provider and didn't start submitting submitting OASIS data by June 30 you're looking at a 2 percent payment reduction next year. If you started participating in Medicare before May 1, you're on the hook for OASIS data submission in 2011 to avoid the 2012 pay cut, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services says in a new MLN Matters article.

The catch: "HHAs whose initial surveys are completed in the early months of the year may not receive their retroactive notification of participation, containing their CMS Certification Number (CCN), from the CMS Regional Office until May or June," CMS recognizes in the article. "For these recently enrolled HHAs, it is important to act immediately after receiving their CCN. The HHA should immediately begin to submit OASIS data, as required by their Conditions of Participation, before June 30, 2011."

Don't forget: Agencies must complete an HHCAHPS Participation Exemption Request form for CY 2012 on the HHCAHPS website to qualify for the exemption.

Don't overlook a valuable resource in making your transition to the ICD-10 diagnosis coding system. CMS and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have issued "General Equivalence Mappings" or GEMS, the agencies remind providers.

Reminder: ICD-9 will undergo a code freeze starting Oct. 1. "This is the last day for regular updates to both the ICD-9 and ICD-10 code sets," CMS explains. "Starting Oct. 1, 2012 there will be only limited code updates to ICD-9-CM and ICD-10 code sets to capture new technology and new diseases."

Deadline: ICD-10 will take effect in October 2013. What is required for the physician signature regarding faceto- face encounter rules?

Answer: Look to a new frequently asked question from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services for the answer to this commonly asked question. "One physician signature suffices if the face-to-face encounter documentation is colocated with the physician's certification of eligibility," CMS says in FAQ # 10633 posted in May. "Otherwise, if the face-to-face documentation is attached as an addendum to the certification (a separate document), the face-to-face documentation and certification each require a signature. Electronic signatures are acceptable."