Mandatory Use Date for ABN Form

In March 2011, CMS revised the Advanced Beneficiary Notice of Noncoverage (ABN) form used by healthcare professionals, including physicians, when they expect Medicare will deny payment. The mandatory date to use this revised form is January 1, 2012. Old forms used on or after January 1, 2012, are considered invalid.

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Medicare eRx Hardship Exemptions under Review

An update from the AMA stated that CMS is reviewing each hardship exemption request for the Medicare e-prescribing program on an individual basis and has not yet completed its analysis. Therefore, it is possible that some physicians will be subjected to a 1 percent Medicare payment penalty inappropriately until the backlog of exemption requests is reviewed. Ultimately, CMS will reprocess the claims. Read information regarding remittance advice and information on the impact to physician reimbursement and patient co-pays. Additional information and resources can be found on the AMA website.

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Update on 2012 Medicare Physician Payment Rates
Highmark Medicare Services has posted the new fee schedule and is ready to process claims. Read more.

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Deadline Extended for Choosing Medicare Participation Status to Feb. 14, 2012

CMS has extended the annual Medicare participation enrollment period through February 14, 2012. The previous deadline was December 31. If a provider has already issued a participation election request prior to the December 31, 2011 cutoff, but has now determined that he/she wants to change the participation election request, he/she may do so as long as the request is postmarked by February 14, 2012. The participation status is effective January 1, 2012. The AMA's Medicare Participation Kit can help physicians evaluate their participation options.

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Interested in the new MPMS Charge Capture Auditing Tool developed by MSNJ and Laura S. Tarlow, MBA, CMPE? Read more. The tool is free to MSNJ members and available for purchase by nonmembers. E-mail info@msnj.org for more information.

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