Hospitals Open Door Forum - Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services

http://www.cms.gov/Outreach-and-education/outreach/OpenDoorForums/ODF_Hospitals.html

As part of our ongoing effort to keep you informed of the latest developments related to the Open Payments Program (Physician Payments Sunshine Act), the following new resources are now available on the website:

Additional Open Payments FAQs Added

These new FAQs are related to a wide variety of Open Payments topics, including loans for covered devices, clarification on when a distributer is considered an applicable manufacturer and how to classify a number of different forms of payments.

Notice in Federal Register: Public Comments for CMS-10495

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA), Open Payments published a notice in the Federal Register requesting public comments for CMS-10495 (Registration, Attestation, Dispute and Resolution, Assumptions Document and Data Retention Requirements for Open Payments). This PRA package explains the Open Payments registration data to be collected from applicable manufacturers and applicable GPOs, plus the data needed from physicians and investors for them to register for the program and review the data provided by applicable manufacturers and applicable GPOs. The 60-day public comment period on CMS-10495 closes on September 20, 2013.

Two Continuing Medical Education Activities are Available

Also available for physicians to learn more about Open Payments is a continuing medical education (CME) activity. Two such activities are available and accessible via Medscape; both are accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (due to email formatting restrictions, please review the version of this document on the Open Door Forum page for details of the two activities.)

Medscape accounts are free and users do not have to be health care professionals to register. Registration can be found on the Medscape website www.medscape.com.

Data Submission File Specifications (formerly known as Data Collection Templates)

The Open Payments program website includes the data submission file specifications for 2013; physicians, applicable manufacturers and applicable GPOs should become familiar with the categories used to describe reportable payments or other transfers of value, and ownership or investment interests. These specifications are critical, as they will be needed for data submission in early 2014. The OMB control number is 0938-1173.

Note, the first Open Payments program cycle (August 1, 2013 through December 31, 2013) is a partial data collection period of only five months, as compared to future program cycles which will run for the entire year. For this first period, the data collected by applicable manufacturers and GPOs through December 31^st, 2013 will be submitted to CMS in early 2014. Physicians do not need take any action or submit data to CMS. They will have the opportunity to review the submitted data and work with the applicable manufacturer and applicable GPO to correct their submitted information before CMS makes it public.

CMS Created Mobile Apps to Assist with Payment Tracking
As physicians, applicable manufacturers and applicable GPOs begin tracking financial data, remember that there are new mobile apps available to assist in Open Payments implementation, one for industry use and one that physicians may use. Indeed, the objective for these apps is to make tracking payment information easier and more convenient, and to improve the accuracy of payment information by tracking payments as they occur throughout the year.

You can download the mobile apps directly from your app store (iOS Apple™ or GooglePlay™); search for either Open Payments Mobile for Industry or Open Payments Mobile for Physicians. The upcoming National Provider Call on August 8^th will provide a demonstration of the apps’ functionality; to register, visit MLN Connects Upcoming Calls.

Questions

For any questions relating to Open Payments, contact the Help Desk at OpenPayments@cms.hhs.gov.

Hospitals Open Door Forum

Overview:

The Hospital & Hospital Quality Open Door Forum (ODF) addresses the concerns and questions of the Hospital service setting. The very broad scope of topics discussed within this forum, include payment, coverage, conditions of participation, billing and many other current issues that are related to policy implementation. The Inpatient PPS, Outpatient PPS, provisions of the Affordable Care Act and other laws that affect the setting are all covered, and a recurring update from the areas of the Hospital Quality Initiative including the Hospital CAHPS initiative. Timely announcements and clarifications regarding important rulemaking, agency program initiatives and other related areas are also included in the forums.

CMS will host a Special Open Door Forum (ODF) call to allow hospitals, practitioners, and other interested parties to give feedback on the physician order and physician certification, inpatient hospital admission and medical review criteria, and Part B inpatient billing provisions that were released on August 2, 2013 in the FY 2014 Inpatient Prospective Payment System (IPPS) final rule (CMS-1599-F). If you wish to participate, dial 1-877-251-0301; Conference ID: 31049561. Please see the full announcement in the Downloads section below. Thank you for your continued interest in the CMS Open Door Forums.
As part of our ongoing effort to keep you informed of the latest developments related to the OPEN PAYMENTS Program (Physician Payments Sunshine Act), new resources are now available. Please see the Downloads section below for more information.
The agenda for the Tuesday, August 6, 2013, Hospital & Hospital Quality Open Door Forum is now available in the Downloads section below. If you wish to participate, dial 1-800-837-1935; Conference ID: 14949842. Thank you for your continued interest in the CMS Open Door Forums.
The next Hospital & Hospital Quality Open Door Forum is scheduled for Tuesday, August 6, 2013 from 2:00pm – 3:00pm, ET. If you wish to participate, dial 1-800-837-1935; Conference ID: 14949842. An agenda will be posted in the Downloads section below prior to the call. Thank you for your continued interest in the CMS Open Door Forums.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will host an ICD-10 Basics National Provider Call on Thursday, August 22, 2013, from 1:30-3:00pm ET. The target audience is medical coders, physicians, physician office staff, nurses and other non-physician practitioners, provider billing staff, health records staff, vendors, educators, system maintainers, laboratories, and all Medicare providers. Please see the Downloads section below for the full announcement including registration instructions. Thank you.
There was an error in the announcement for the two ESRD Quality Incentive Program National Provider Calls. The error has been fixed. Please see the updated announcement in the Downloads section below. Thank you.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is pleased to offer an opportunity to provide feedback to CMS on a proposed rule that makes revisions to the Medicare Quality Improvement Organization (QIO) program. The proposed rule is open for comment until September 6, 2013. Please see the Downloads section below for more information.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will host two ESRD Quality Incentive Program National Provider Calls. The dates of the calls are Wednesdays, August 7&14, 2013. Registration is open now. Please see the Downloads section below for full announcement and registration instructions. Thank you.
Thursday, August 8, 2013 – Open Payments: Policy Updates on Payments and the Physician Resource Toolkit – Registration Now Open. Please see the Downloads section below for full announcement.
CMS is hosting a series of EHR Incentive Program related national calls. The calls will take place on July 23, 2013, July 24, 2013 & August 15, 2013. Please see the Downloads section below for registration information.
We are extending the deadline for submitting informal public comments on three candidate measures for the PCHQR program to 11:59 PM (EDT) on July 19, 2013. This extension provides stakeholders and interested parties two additional weeks to submit informal public comments, while still allowing CMS to meet its programmatic goals. Thank you again for your support and participation. Please see Downloads section below for the full announcement.
The June 25, 2013, from 2:00pm - 3:00pm ET, Hospital & Hospital Quality Open Door Forum is Question & Answer only. If you wish to participate, dial 1-800-837-1935; Conference ID: 97148514. Thank you for your continued interest in the CMS Open Door Forums.
The next Hospital & Hospital Quality Open Door Forum is scheduled for Tuesday, June 25, 2013 from 2:00pm – 3:00pm, ET. If you wish to participate, dial 1-800-837-1935; Conference ID: 97148514. An agenda will be posted in the Downloads section below prior to the call. Thank you for your continued interest in the CMS Open Door Forums.
Please see the announcement in the Downloads section below titled, "Informal Public Comment Period: Proposed CMS PPS-Exempt Cancer Hospital Measures. CMS is requesting that stakeholders review and provide feedback on these measures. All comments on the measures must be received by July 3, 2013 at 11:59 PM (EDT), prior to the July 4th holiday.
On Thursday, May 16th, CMS hosted a webinar titled, “Data.Medicare.Gov: Get Started!” Please see the Downloads section below for the link to the May 16th webinar. Thank you.
On Thursday, May 16th, 1pm-2pm ET, The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will be hosting a webinar, “Data.Medicare.Gov: Get Started!” to: Provide an introduction to Data.Medicare.Gov; Demonstrate options for accessing the data; and Describe how to make use of the site’s tools for exploring and interacting with the data. Please see the Downloads section below for full announcement with background information and registration instructions.
CMS Seeks Public Comment on Defining QIO Service Areas - Comments Accepted through Friday, May 31, 2013. Please see Downloads section below for full announcement.
CMS will host a National Provider Call on Wednesday, May 22, 2013, titled: National Physician Payment Transparency Program (Open Payments) - What You Need To Know. Please see Downloads section below for full announcement.
LTCH Quality Reporting Program Requirements for FY 2014 - May 15, 2013 Deadline for FY 2014 Payment Determination. See Downloads section below for full Announcement/Reminder.
The Durable Medical Equipment, Orthotics and Supplies (DMEPOS) Competitive Bidding Program will be changing how some Medicare patients get covered supplies. Be sure to give your Medicare patients the correct information. Please review (copy and paste the link into your web browser) the following link for information for people who refer Medicare beneficiaries for DMEPOS: https://www.cms.gov/Medicare/Medicare-Fee-for-Service-Payment/DMEPOSCompetitiveBid/index.html?redirect=/DMEPOSCompetitiveBid/01_overview.asp.
Please see the "New Electronic Mailing List to Keep Fee-For-Service Providers Informed" announcement in the Downloads section below.
CMS has made available two new recorded training sessions for IRFs on the QIES Technical Support Office (QTSO) website. The sessions are as follows:
1. IRF-PAI Assessment Submission Process – provides the necessary instructions for submitting IRF-PAI assessment data to the ASAP IRF-PAI Submission System beginning October 1, 2012.
2. CASPER Reports for IRFs – provides information about accessing and interpreting the ASAP system-generated IRF-PAI Facility Final Validation Report, identifies other reports available to IRFs and gives an overview of the basic functionality of the CASPER Reporting application.
• The recordings can be accessed via the e-University page on the QTSO website at https://www.qtso.com/webex/qiesclasses.php.
• Please contact the QTSO Help Desk at (800) 339-9313 or help@qtso.com if you have questions regarding this training session.