Eli's Rehab Report

Palmetto attempts to streamline -- and speed up -- the process.

You have a new process to resolve billing disputes with other providers if Palmetto GBA is your intermediary.

The change is "in response to requests received at coalition meetings and feedback from the provider community," the intermediary says on its website. "The dispute resolution process includes ... overlapping dates of service and hospice sequential billing situations," it says.

"The new process will require you to submit requests in writing," Palmetto explains. The intermediary has a new job aid and Billing Dispute Resolution Request form on its website. To access the form, go to the website and select "Forms" from the center menu. Click on "Home Health and Hospice" and the form will be third in the list.

Good news: "You will no longer be required to make at least three attempts to resolve the situation before contacting Palmetto GBA for assistance," the contractor says. But you will have to "demonstrate that you have attempted to resolve the situation before submitting the form."