Monday Morning Rounds with CMS

TOPICS:

Posted By: HHS/ONC/CMS Communications June 28, 2021

ICYMI, here is recent communication from CMS.

Deadlines & Important Dates

Provide Feedback on Proposed Changes to the Medicare Promoting Interoperability Program for Hospitals – On April 27, CMS issued the Fiscal Year 2022 Inpatient Prospective Payment Systems for Acute Care Hospitals and the Long-Term Care Hospital Prospective Payment System Proposed Rule. Comments on the FY 2022 IPPS and LTCH PPS Proposed Rule are due no later than 5 p.m. EDT, June 28, 2021.

CMS Accepting Proposals for New Measures for the Medicare Promoting Interoperability Program until June 30 – CMS wants to remind eligible hospitals and critical access hospitals that the Annual Call for Measures for the Medicare Promoting Interoperability Program is open through Wednesday, June 30, 2021.

News

$20 Million in American Rescue Plan Funding Available to Improve Access to State-based Marketplace Coverage to improve access to affordable, comprehensive health insurance coverage for consumers in their states. States can apply for funding to help modernize or update their systems, programs, or technology to comply with federal Marketplace requirements, including the recent provisions of the American Rescue Plan (ARP) that increased the financial assistance available to certain consumers.

Claims, Pricers & Codes

  • ICD-10-PCS Procedure Codes: FY 2022
    Fiscal year 2022 ICD-10-PCS procedure codes are available on the 2022 ICD-10 PCS webpage. Use these codes for discharges on or after October 1, 2021, through September 30, 2022.
  • Average Sales Price Files: July 2021
    CMS posted the July 2021 Average Sales Price (ASP) and Not Otherwise Classified (NOC) pricing files and crosswalks on the 2021 ASP Drug Pricing Files webpage.

Additional Resources Now Available in 2021 Quality Benchmarks Zip File – When you submit measures for the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) quality performance category, each measure is assessed against its benchmark to determine how many points the measure earns. The 2021 MIPS Quality Benchmarks (ZIP) lists and explains the 2021 benchmarks used to assess performance in the quality performance category of MIPS. This file is available on the QPP Resource Library.

CMS COVID Provider Toolkit – CMS released a set of toolkits for providers, states and insurers to help the health care system prepare to swiftly administer the vaccine. These resources are designed to increase the number of providers that can administer the vaccine and ensure adequate reimbursement for administering the vaccine in Medicare, while making it clear to private insurers and Medicaid programs their responsibility to cover the vaccine at no charge to beneficiaries. In addition, CMS is taking action to increase reimbursement for any new COVID treatments that are approved by the FDA.

CDC COVID-19 Vaccination Communication Toolkit – Medical centers, clinics, and clinicians can use or adapt these ready-made materials to build confidence about COVID-19 vaccination among your healthcare teams and other staff.

MLN Matters Articles

From CMS Innovation Center

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Innovation Center, (@CMSinnovates) also known as “the Innovation Center,” develops and tests new healthcare payment and service delivery models.