As CMS Contemplates ICD-10 Delay, Take Advantage of the Slow Rollout

Even as the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) examines the implications of the ICD-10 delay—saying on its website that the agency will provide guidance to providers and stakeholders soon—there are some steps oncology and hematology practice managers can take now before the rollout gets into full swing.

First, CMS has provided resources for practices:

• View the ICD-10 introduction fact sheet and FAQs to get a general overview on ICD-10.
• See official resources designed to help providers, payers, vendors, and non-covered entities with the transition to ICD-10.
• Access two free education modules that provide guidance to small practices ICD-10: A Roadmap for Small Clinical Practices and ICD-10: Small Practice Guide to a Smooth Transition. Continuing medical education (CME) and continuing education (CE) credits are available to physicians and nurses who complete the learning modules.

A blog posting by Kathleen LePar, vice president of strategic services at the consulting company, Beacon Partners, suggests some tips to take advantage of the delay. These include:

• Increase focus on clinical documentation improvement (CDI)
• Develop a long-term coder strategy
• Optimize your revenue cycle performance
• Evaluate computer-assisted coding
• Continue dual coding and training
• Comprehensive system remediation and testing
• Focus on physician education (employed and ancillary)

She writes that taking the time now to make sound operational changes to improve the revenue cycle process will make it easier to identify and mitigate risk as the transition approaches. With a projected 30% to 40% dip in cash expected following the transition, improving billing efficiency and productivity will allow practices to be reimbursed accurately.