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Congressional Deal Passes
As part of a deal extending payroll tax cuts and unemployment benefits, Congress has prescribed 10 more months of delay for scheduled reduction of physician payments under the SGR clause of Medicare .
The deal, which was passed by Congress today and is expected to be signed into law by President Obama, delays scheduled SGR payment reductions through the end of 2012.
HHS Announces Intent
HHS announced, after years of strong statements to the contrary , its intention to extend the deadline for theadoption of ICD-10 . The announcement doesn't explain exactly how HHS will determine the new date or how much extra time might be allowed. The announcement does mention that HHS will work with the "provider community to reexamine the pace" that new regulations are adopted.
The full text of the announcement is available online and reprinted below . . .
As part of President Obama's commitment to reducing regulatory burden, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen G. Sebelius today announced that HHS will initiate a process to postpone the date by which certain health care entities have to comply with International Classification of Diseases, 10th Edition diagnosis and procedure codes (ICD-10).
The final rule adopting ICD-10 as a standard was published in January 2009 and set a compliance date of October 1, 2013 - a delay of two years from the compliance date initially specified in the 2008 proposed rule. HHS will announce a new compliance date moving forward.
"ICD-10 codes are important to many positive improvements in our health care system," said HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. "We have heard from many in the provider community who have concerns about the administrative burdens they face in the years ahead. We are committing to work with the provider community to reexamine the pace at which HHS and the nation implement these important improvements to our health care system."
ICD-10 codes provide more robust and specific data that will help improve patient care and enable the exchange of our health care data with that of the rest of the world that has long been using ICD-10. Entities covered under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) will be required to use the ICD-10 diagnostic and procedure codes.
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