**Updated November 9, 2009- The Medicare Home Health Prospective Payment System (HH PPS) Rate Update for CY 2010 Final Rule (CMS-1560-F) contained some important revisions to the level of outlier payments available for 60-day home health episodes of care that carry unusually high costs. For CY 2010, CMS will cap home health outlier payments at 10 percent per HHA and target total aggregate outlier payments at 2.5 percent of all HH PPS payments. Final instructions (Change Request/Transmittal) describing the changes that will be made by Medicare contractors to implement this new outlier policy are currently being developed and are expected to be released sometime in early December. HHAs should note that HH PPS billing instructions are not changing as a result of this policy. CMS will provide an update as to the status of those instructions at the next Home Health, Hospice & DME Open Door Forum on Wednesday, December 2nd at 2pm-3pmET.

**Updated November 5, 2009-The next Home Health, Hospice & DME Open Door Forum is  scheduled for Wednesday, December 2, 2009 from 2pm-3pmET.If you wish to participate dial 1-800-837-1935 Conference ID 40379384. Please see the Downloads section below for the full participation announcement. Thank you for your continued interest in the CMS Open Door Forums.

**Updated November 3, 2009- Please note that the text (.txt) version of the 2010 HCPCS Annual Update and the HCPCS Alpha-Numeric Index file published on 11/02/2009 contain an error. CMS has corrected the error. The Alpha-Numeric Index file was re-posted on 11/03/2009 at 11am ET. The text version of the HCPCS Annual Update will be re-posted on 11/03/2009 by 3pm ET. The Excel version of the HCPCS Annual Update published on 11/02/2009 is accurate and unaffected by this error.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is pleased to announce the scheduled release of modifications to the Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS) code set. These changes were posted on 11/02/2009 to the HCPCS web page at http://www.cms.hhs.gov/HCPCSReleaseCodeSets/ANHCPCS/list.asp. Coding changes are effective on the date indicated in the update. The content of the 2010 HCPCS Annual Update reflects CMS' final coding decision for Negative Pressure Wound Therapy (NPWT) devices. The Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008 (MIPPA), section 154(c)(3) requires the Secretary to evaluate the Health Care Common Procedure Codes (HCPCS) codes for NPWT using an existing process, and to consider all relevant studies and information in making the evaluation. CMS utilized its existing public process for evaluating HCPCS coding and determined that the current HCPCS codes for NPWT are appropriate and should not be changed. For more information about CMS' evaluation refer to: http://www.cms.hhs.gov/medHCPCSgeninfo/downloads/NPWTREV_FINAL.pdf.

**Updated October 22, 2009- Special Open Door Forum: Medicare Durable Medical Equipment, Prosthetics, Orthotics, and Supplies Competitive Bidding Program Bidders' Conference - Open Call will be held on Wednesday, November 4, 2009 from 2pm-3pmET. This call will be to respond to prospective bidders' questions about the competitive bidding process. This call is Conference Call Only. If you wish to participate, dial 1-800-837-1935 & reference conference ID: 23045924. Please see the Downloads section below for the full participation announcement. Thank you for your continued interest in the CMS Open Door Forums.

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Home Health, Hospice, and Durable Medical Equipment Open Door Forum (ODF) Overview:

The Home Health, Hospice & Durable Medical Equipment ODF addresses the concerns of three unique health care areas within the Medicare & Medicaid programs. Issues related to Home Health PPS, the newly proposed competitive bidding for DME, and the Medicare Hospice benefit are all topics the forum has covered. Many of the issues covered bridge concerns within all three settings, and the combination of the topics under one forum has been useful to many participants. We continue to hold Special ODFs when individual policy issues require special attention. Timely announcements and clarifications regarding important rulemaking, agency program initiatives, and other related areas are also included in the forums.

Downloads
Wednesday, December 2, 2009-  Home Health, Hospice & DME Open Door Forum (24KB, PDF) Wednesday, November 4, 2009- Special Open Door Forum: Medicare Durable Medical Equipment, Prosthetics, Orthotics, and Supplies Competitive Bidding Program Bidders' Conference - Open Call (PDF, 24KB) DMEPOS Supplier Accreditation and Surety Bond Requirement Deadlines Coming In October 2009 (PDF, 24KB) Attachment D (December 2008) (PDF, 290 KB) Carrier/FI Directory (PDF, 338KB) A/B MAC Jurisdiction Map (PDF, 32KB)
Related Links Inside CMS
Home Health, Hospice & DME Open Door Forum Mailing List Sign-Up CMS Home Health Agency Center CMS Hospice Center CMS DMEPOS Center DMEPOS Competitive Bidding Overview of DMEPOS Fee Schedule Details for Post Acute Care Payment Reform Demonstration (PAC-PRD) Survey & Certification HCPCS General Information OASIS
Related Links Outside CMS
Medicare Supplier Directory Home Health Compare Medicare Learning Network (MLN) Product Ordering Page Government Printing Office Federal Register

Page Last Modified: 11/09/2009 11:06:15 AM
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