OASIS Alert

Critical decision: Which OASIS to use.

Question: How do we know when to use OASIS B-1 and when to use OASIS C?

Answer: Look to M0090 (Date assessment completed) said Deb Deitz, with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services contractor Abt Associates. If you're doing an assessment and the M0090 date is Jan. 1, or later, then you need to be collecting OASIS C data, no matter if it's a start of care, resumption of care, follow-up, transfer, or discharge, a new patient on service or a patient continuing on service, Deitz said in CMS' "Train the Trainer" conference call on Oct. 22, 2009.

Planning: If you begin a start of care assessment in the five days prior to Jan. 1, you would need to finish it by Dec.31. Because otherwise if the as-sessment completion date, the M0090, is Jan. 1, or later, then you're going to need to start over with an assessment using OASIS C, Deitz said.

On the other hand, be clear with your staff that they can't begin using OASIS C items -- no matter how much they like the item -- until Jan. 1, Deitz said.