Urology Coding Alert

But start preparing, because an end is in sight.

On Jan. 11, Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra extended the COVID-19 public health emergency for another 90 days. It’s the twelfth extension of the public health emergency (PHE) since its retroactive January 2020 advent.

But the clock really is ticking down to PHE’s end. On Jan. 30, the White House released a statement setting the PHE’s end date on May 11. “This wind-down would align with the Administration’s previous commitments to give at least 60 days’ notice prior to termination of the PHE,” the statement points out.

Know the History

Experts had predicted the Biden administration would announce the PHE’s end by February. But the announcement was likely hastened by proposed legislation from Republicans that would end the PHE immediately upon enactment, with no notice.

“An abrupt end to the emergency declarations would create wide-ranging chaos and uncertainty throughout the health care system,” the White House statement protests. Although any such bill(s) passed by the House of Representatives would likely not pass the Senate, or would face a Biden veto, congressional Democrats had asked the White House for a definitive timeline for the PHE’s end to boost their position in opposing such legislation, according to press reports.

Resource: You can find the White House announcement here: https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/ SAP-H.R.-382-H.J.-Res.-7.pdf.

Start Your Preparations

The Biden administration has been signaling the COVID-19 PHE’s end since late last summer, but now there’s a concrete end date — which means you need to start preparing for it pronto.

Helpful: In an August blog entry last year titled “Creating a Roadmap for the End of the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency,” the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) “encourage[d] health care providers to prepare for the end of these flexibilities as soon as possible and to begin moving forward to reestablish previous health and safety standards and billing practices.” CMS included provider-specific lists of waivers and their statuses — some of which have since changed due to legislation or rulemaking.

Resource: You can find the blog here: https://www.cms.gov/ blog/creating-roadmap-end-covid-19-public-health-emergency. Stay tuned to Urology Coding Alert for more information on how the end of the PHE will affect your practice and how you can prepare.