CMS has had a change of heart regarding its July 6 deadline for physician enrollment in the agency's Provider Enrollment, Chain and Ownership System, or PECOS.

According to a June 30 news release, the federal regulation that requires all ordering and referring physicians to be enrolled in PECOS will still be effective as of July 6, but "CMS will, for the time being, not implement changes that will automatically reject claims based on orders, certifications and referrals made by providers that have not yet had their applications approved by July 6."

The decision to ease up on enforcing the deadline was made as CMS continues to receive feedback and complaints from physicians about PECOS' painful enrollment process.

"While more than 800,000 physicians and other health care professionals have successfully enrolled in PECOS, some Medicare providers have encountered problems," said CMS in the release. "CMS is continuing to update and streamline the process, and more providers have been enrolled in the past few days.

"Many physicians and other providers and suppliers have continued to make good faith efforts to comply with the requirements of the law and regulation," acknowledged CMS.

Just days ago, CMS announced that physician claims for items ordered or services rendered for Medicare beneficiaries would be automatically rejected if the ordering physician or other provider was not officially registered in the PECOS system by the July 6 deadline.

On May 5, CMS issued an interim final regulation implementing provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act that, beginning July 1, permit only Medicare-enrolled physicians or eligible professionals to certify or order certain items and services under Medicare Part B. CMS is accepting comments on the proposed regulation through July 6 and will issue a final regulation after those comments are reviewed and considered.

By AAFP

Story By:Healthcare Finance News

ENGLEWOOD, CO – Medical practice managers cite “dealing with rising operating costs” as their biggest daily challenge in 2010, according to a new Medical Group Management Association survey.

For a third year, medical practice professionals sounded off about their biggest daily challenges, as well as their struggles to safeguard their practices' financial solvency despite a failing economy, in the MGMA’s 2010 “Medical Practice Today: What Members Have to Say” survey.

According to the research, the top three challenges of running a group practice are: 1. Dealing with rising operating costs; 
 2. Managing finances with the uncertainty of Medicare reimbursement rates; and 3. Selecting and implementing a new electronic health record system

“It is not surprising that 'maintaining finances with the uncertainty of Medicare reimbursement rates' jumped to the No. 2 spot this year due to the continued Congressional irresponsibility in not permanently addressing the flawed sustainable growth rate (SGR) formula,” said William F. Jessee, MD, president and CEO of the MGMA.

Medicare reimbursement rate uncertainty had ranked fifth in both 2008 and 2009.

An organizational governance issue MGMA introduced to the list this year, “managing teamwork and group dynamics among physicians,” debuted at No. 8. “Implementing a patient-centered medical home model of care” made the biggest leap from last year’s list (from No. 22 to No. 12).

“Practices are clearly balancing the very serious issue of keeping their practices afloat amid unprecedented financial uncertainty with the more delicate practice management issues such as managing group dynamics and overseeing their organizations’ strategic direction,” Jessee said. “It’s a testament to the profession of medical practice management that they must find a way to survive and move forward despite the dynamic and challenging environment in which they practice.”

The MGMA found that when compared with independent medical practices, hospitals and health system respondents were more likely to find “challenging” these issues: * Modifying physician compensation methodology; * Recruiting physicians
• Dealing with rising operating costs; and * Implementing a patient-centered medical home model of care

However, hospitals and health system respondents were less likely than independent medical practices to be challenged by “maintaining physician compensation levels” and “negotiating contracts with payers.”

For a second year, the MGMA also asked study participants how the recession is affecting their medical groups and how they are responding. Respondents indicated that improved billing collections and/or denial management process was at the top of the list.