After hearing concerns that two new questions on Medicare enrollment and revalidation forms could be burdensome and confusing for physicians, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) says it now plans to make them optional.
The American Medical Association (AMA) recently sent a letter to CMS urging them to remove the questions about accepting new Medicare patients and advanced diagnostic imaging services the physicians provide.
As the acceptance of new Medicare patients is not a program eligibility requirement, the AMA contended that physicians may not recognize this as a mandatory question. This could result in their enrollment application being denied.
The AMA also expressed concern about physicians being asked to provide a list of advanced diagnostic imaging services and their accreditation for each service. This is a duplicative request as CMS already obtains this information from accrediting organizations.
“Based in part on your comments and recommendations, we have taken steps to make both fields optional,” said Donald Berwick, MD, CMS administrator, in a response letter to the AMA.
The AMA plans to monitor the enrollment forms to ensure that CMS implements this change on both the Provider Enrollment, Chain and Ownership System (PECOS) and the hard copy enrollment form (CMS-8551).