Physicians, Nurses and Allied Health Professionals Open Door Forum

Overview:

The Physicians, Nurses and Allied Health Professionals Open Door Forum (ODF) addresses the concerns and issues of Medicare and Medicaid physicians, non-physician practitioners, nurses, and other allied health care specialists. This diverse group of providers serves Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries in almost all service settings, ranging from independent physician offices to specialized departments within larger facilities. The types of issues that come up during this forum are as varied as the providers who participate, but some frequent topics include the Physician Fee Schedule, Stark regulations, care plan oversight, payment and documentation rules, Provider Enrollment Chain Ownership System (PECOS), as well as the roles and responsibilities of different allied health professional staff under CMS regulations. Timely announcements and clarifications regarding important rulemaking, quality program initiatives, and other related areas are also included in the forums.
******
The Transcript & Audio File of the July 31, 2013 Suggested Electronic Clinical Template for Lower Limb Prostheses Special Open Door Forum is now available on the Special Open Door Forum webpage: http://www.cms.gov/Outreach-and-Education/Outreach/OpenDoorForums/ODFSpecialODF.html
The next Physicians, Nurses & Allied Health Professionals Open Door Forum is scheduled for Tuesday, August 27, 2013 from 2:00pm – 3:00pm ET. If you wish to participate, dial 1-800-837-1935; Conference ID: 14980086. Please see the Downloads section below for full participation instructions including the agenda. Thank you for your continued interest in the CMS Open Door 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 Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will host a series of Special Open Door Forum (ODF) calls to allow physicians, prosthetists, and other interested parties to give feedback on the Suggested Electronic Clinical Template for Lower Limb Prostheses for possible Medicare use nationwide. The next call is scheduled for Wednesday, September 11, 2013 from 4pm - 5pm ET. Please see the Downloads section below for the full announcement including participation instructions.
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.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will host a series of Special Open Door Forum (ODF) calls to allow physicians, prosthetists, and other interested parties to give feedback on the Suggested Electronic Clinical Template for Lower Limb Prostheses for possible Medicare use nationwide. The next call is scheduled for Wednesday, July 31, 2013 from 1pm - 2pm ET. Please see the Downloads section below for the full announcement including participation instructions.
An updated and more detailed agenda for the Tuesday, July 16, 2013, Physicians, Nurses & Allied Health Professionals Open Door Forum has been added to the Downloads section below. If you wish to participate, dial 1-800-837-1935; Conference ID: 14758940. Thank you for your continued interest in the CMS Open Door Forums.
The next Physicians, Nurses & Allied Health Professionals Open Door Forum is scheduled for Tuesday, July 16, 2013 from 2:00pm – 3:00pm ET. If you wish to participate, dial 1-800-837-1935; Conference ID: 14758940. Please see the Downloads section below for full participation instructions including the agenda. Thank you for your continued interest in the CMS Open Door Forums.
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.
CMS is developing a registry of Medicare providers for participation in the MSI. To accomplish this effort, CMS is seeking to collect accurate contact information by having providers complete the MSI Participant Registration form. The form itself is not a survey. It is a method for gathering pertinent contact information such as name, email address, state, etc. It should take less than 1 minute to complete. For each MSI administration, CMS will randomly select its MSI sample from a list of providers who register to become participants. Please see the Downloads section below for the full registration announcement.

The transcript of the Tuesday, May 28, 2013 Data Elements for Lower Limb Prosthesis Documentation Special Open Door Forum is available in the Downloads section of the Special Open Door Forum Page: http://www.cms.gov/Outreach-and-Education/Outreach/OpenDoorForums/ODFSpecialODF.html . Thank you for your continued interest in the CMS Open Door Forums.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Service will host a series of Special Open Door Forum (ODF) calls to allow physicians, prosthetists, and other interested parties to give feedback on the Suggested Electronic Clinical Template for Lower Limb Prostheses for possible nationwide use for Medicare. The first call was held on Tuesday, May 28, 2013. The next call will take place on June 13, 2013 from 4pm-5pm ET. Please see Downloads section below for the full announcement including participation instructions.

The next Physicians, Nurses & Allied Health Professionals Open Door Forum is scheduled for Tuesday, June 4, 2013 from 2:00pm – 3:00pm ET. If you wish to participate, dial 1-800-837-1935; Conference ID: 78869207. Please see the Downloads section below for full participation instructions including the agenda. Thank you for your continued interest in the CMS Open Door Forums.
National Provider Calls: Medicare Shared Savings Program Application Process — Register Now
Thursday, June 20; 1:30-3pm ET— Application Review
Thursday, July 18; 1-2:30pm ET— Application Question and Answer Session. Please see Downloads section below for full announcement, including registration instructions.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Service will host a series of Special Open Door Forum (ODF) calls to allow physicians, prosthetists, and other interested parties to give feedback on the Suggested Electronic Clinical Template for Lower Limb Prostheses for possible nationwide use for Medicare. The first call is scheduled for Tuesday, May 28, 2013 from 2pm - 3pm ET. Please see Downloads section below for the full announcement including participation instructions.
If you help people with Original Medicare get certain durable medical equipment and supplies, such as oxygen, walkers, or wheelchairs, you should know about a Medicare program, called the Durable Medical Equipment, Prosthetics, Orthotics, and Supplies (DMEPOS) competitive bidding program, that saves money for taxpayers and people with Medicare and may change the suppliers people with Medicare will need to use. Please see the Downloads section below for the link titled: "Information You Need: New Medicare Equipment and Supplies Program In Your Community."
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.
An updated agenda for the Tuesday, April 23, 2013 Physicians, Nurses & Allied Health Professionals Open Door Forum is available in the Downloads section below. Thank you for your continued interest in the CMS Open Door Forums.
The next Physicians, Nurses & Allied Health Professionals Open Door Forum is scheduled for Tuesday, April 23, 2013 from 2:00pm – 3:00pm ET. If you wish to participate, dial 1-800-837-1935; Conference ID: 78874311. Please see the Downloads section below for full participation instructions including the agenda. Thank you for your continued interest in the CMS Open Door Forums.
National Provider Calls: Medicare Shared Savings Program Application Process — Registration Now Open
Tuesday, April 9; 2:30-4pm ET — Preparing to Apply
Tuesday, April 23; 1:30-3pm ET — Tips on Completing a Successful Application. See Downloads section below for full announcement.
National Provider Call: Begin Transitioning to ICD-10 in 2013 — Registration Now Open
Thursday, April 18; 1:30-3pm ET. See Downloads section below for full announcement.
The CMS Innovation Center will be hosting a conference call on Tuesday, March 12, 2013 from 3:00pm to 4:00pm ET. CMS Innovation Center Director, Richard Gilfillan, MD, and Karen Murphy, RN, PhD, Director of the State Innovations Group, will provide an overview of the Model Testing, Pre-Testing and Model Design awards as well as additional information on how providers can participate in the State Innovation Models initiative. Please see the Downloads section below for the full announcement with participation instructions. Thank you.
The next Physicians, Nurses & Allied Health Professionals Open Door Forum is scheduled for Tuesday, March 12, 2013 from 2:00pm – 3:00pm ET. If you wish to participate, dial 1-800-837-1935; Conference ID: 78871126. Please see the Downloads section below for full participation instructions including the agenda. Thank you for your continued interest in the CMS Open Door Forums.
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.
CMS is providing an opportunity to preview the redesigned Physician Compare website prior to its release early this year. Please see the Downloads section below for further details. Thank you.
Please see the "New Electronic Mailing List to Keep Fee-For-Service Providers Informed" announcement in the Downloads section below.