ALERT: CONGRESS POSTPONES MEDICARE CUTS UNTIL APRIL 1, 2010!

Claims to be Released for Payment

The Senate finally passed the "Temporary Extension Act of 2010," which included provisions to extend 2009 Medicare physician payment rates through the end of March 2010.

As a result, the 21.2% payment cut that took effect on March 1 has been postponed until April 1, 2010.

The fees presently on the MAC web sites should be used until further notice and claims with dates of service March 1 and later which were being held by Medicare contractors will be released for processing and payment.

Please keep in mind that the statutory payment floors still apply and, therefore, clean electronic claims cannot be paid before 14 calendar days after the date they are received by Medicare contractors (29 calendar days for clean paper claims).

Congress is still debating the next steps that will be taken to address the Medicare payment crisis to include still another short-term patch to the sustainable growth rate (SGR) formula, including proposals that would postpone cuts for 90 days, 7 months, or through the end of 2010.

Physicians are urged to keep up the pressure, especially in the Senate, and demand legislation to permanently resolve the Medicare physician payment crisis.

Use the AMA’s Grassroots Hotline: 1-800-833-6354.

You still have until March 17 to change your Medicare "participating" or "non-participating" status. As a result, physicians are urged to review the guidance document from the AMA at the link below.

The document is entitled "Medicare Participation Options for Physicians" and addresses important considerations for physicians when making their 2010 participation decision, especially as it relates to participation, non-participation and opting out of the Medicare Program entirely for a period of two years. That document is available on the AMA web site at:

http://www.ama-assn.org/ama1/pub/upload/mm/399/med-par-options.pdf

For guidance on this issue, contact us through the Third Party Insurance Help Program.

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James A. McNally, CPC

Health Care Consultant Services