{"id":27012,"date":"2020-04-13T14:30:11","date_gmt":"2020-04-13T14:30:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dev.mtelehealth.com\/?p=27012"},"modified":"2020-04-13T14:30:11","modified_gmt":"2020-04-13T14:30:11","slug":"cms-payment-policies-regulatory-flexibilities-during-covid-19-emergency","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/drmiltie.com\/at-home-testing\/cms-payment-policies-regulatory-flexibilities-during-covid-19-emergency\/","title":{"rendered":"CMS payment policies & regulatory flexibilities during COVID-19 emergency"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The AMA has been working constantly with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to identify issues arising due to COVID-19 and to recommend specific actions to improve Medicare coverage of services and reduce regulatory burdens on physicians during this crisis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Featured updates: COVID-19<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Below are key actions CMS has taken in response to AMA advocacy. Topics include telehealth, the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS), enrollment, elective surgery and regulatory relief. For the complete list of CMS payment and policy guidance related to COVID-19, please access the CMS website<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

HHS Emergency Fund disbursement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

On April 10, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced the immediate disbursement of the first $30 billion out of the $100 billion that Congress allocated to hospitals, physicians and other health care providers in the Public Health and Social Services Emergency Fund in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act. The distribution policy adopted by HHS reflects the recommendations from organized medicine made to Secretary Azar by the AMA and 137 medical societies earlier this week, although it is not exactly what we proposed. In part, the difference stems from the administration’s approach of first disbursing $30 billion and later determining how the remainder of the funds will be allocated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This initial $30 billion is being directed to hospitals and physician practices in direct proportion to their share of Medicare fee-for-service spending. The total amount of Medicare FFS spending in 2019 was $484 billion. Hypothetically, if a Medicare provider with a Taxpayer ID Number (TIN) accounted for 1% of total Medicare FFS spending in 2019, the TIN would receive 1% of the $30 billion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This allocation method is similar to the recommendation from organized medicine because we recommended that the distribution be tied to physicians’ Medicare FFS spending from a portion of 2019, pre-COVID-19. It differs from our recommendation in several respects: instead of using a one-month average of three months of Medicare spending, it uses spending for the entire year 2019; and it does not multiply that amount by three to average all-payor revenue for a month. Also, it does not employ any methodology to pay physicians who may have no or few Medicare claims but rely significantly on Medicaid funding; but, at a White House Coronavirus Task Force briefing earlier this week, Administrator Verma indicated that a subsequent distribution from the Emergency Fund will be directed to pediatricians, children’s hospitals, and others who rely on Medicaid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

All facilities and health professionals that billed Medicare FFS in 2019 are eligible for the funds. These are grants, not loans, and do not have to be repaid. Note that the funds will go to each organization’s TIN which normally receives Medicare payments, not to each individual physician. The automatic payments will come to the organizations via Optum Bank with “HHSPAYMENT” as the payment description.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This website also includes a link to terms and conditions<\/a> (PDF) for receipt of the funds that each organization receiving the grants will need to attest to within 30 days of receiving the grant. The funds may be used either for health care related expenses or for lost revenues that are attributable to coronavirus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CMS updates FAQs about regulatory waivers and telehealth flexibilities<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

On April 9, CMS released answers to common questions<\/a> (PDF) about the regulatory and telehealth flexibility available during the COVID-19 emergency, including:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Question<\/strong>: Can Remote Physiologic Monitoring (RPM) services be furnished to new patients as well as established patients?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Answer<\/strong>: Starting March 1 and for the duration of the PHE, RPM services can be furnished to both new and established patients. We suspended, under present circumstances, the requirement that there be an established relationship between the health care provider and the patient because it could impede access to the RPM services<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Question<\/strong>: Should on-site visits conducted via video or through a window in the clinic suite be reported as telehealth services? How could a physician or practitioner bill if this were telehealth?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Answer<\/strong>: Services should only be reported as telehealth services when the individual physician or practitioner furnishing the service is not at the same location as the beneficiary. If the physician or practitioner furnished the service from a place other than where the beneficiary is located (a \u201cdistant site\u201d), they should report those services as telehealth services. If the beneficiary and the physician or practitioner furnishing the service are in the same institutional setting but are utilizing telecommunications technology to furnish the service due to exposure risks, the practitioner would not need to report this service as telehealth and should instead report whatever code described the inperson service furnished.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Medicare advanced payments<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

To assist with cash flow challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic, CMS has expanded its Advanced Payment Program to provide qualifying physicians an emergency upfront payment of up to three months\u2019 Medicare payments based on historical claims information from Oct-Dec 2019. Physicians will need to repay this advance, and CMS has extended the repayment to give physicians 210 days from the date the Medicare Administrative Contractor issues the payment.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

AMA releases special coding advice related to COVID-19<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

New guidance from the AMA provides special coding advice during the COVID-19 public health emergency. One resource outlines coding scenarios<\/a> (PDF) to help health care professionals apply best coding practices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The scenarios include telehealth services for all patients.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Medicare expands telehealth during COVID-19 emergency<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) lifted Medicare restrictions<\/a> on the use of telehealth services during the COVID-19 emergency. Key changes include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n