Medicare Part B providers have until April 5, 2010, to make current their enrollment record in the program and avoid having their claims rejected, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has announced.

In response to requests from medical groups, the agency agreed to delay implementation until then of a policy to deny Medicare reimbursement to physicians and other Part B providers who are not in the Medicare database called the Provider Enrollment, Chain, and Ownership System (PECOS).

For now, if the ordering or referring provider is not in PECOS, the claim will be processed but the provider/supplier will receive a warning message.

Providers who have not updated their Medicare enrollment record since November 2003—when CMS began to use PECOS—need to do so, CMS said. “If these physicians and nonphysician practitioners have no changes to their enrollment data, they need to submit an initial enrollment application which will establish a current enrollment record in PECOS.”

December 11, 2009 - Table of Contents

NIR December 11, 2009 (Full PDF Issue)

Lab Fee Cut Looms, But How Deep Will It Be?

Showdown Soon on Medicare Physician Fee Update for 2010

Focus On: Lab Payment Policy: CMS Issues Final Medicare Crosswalks for New 2010 Lab Codes

CLIA Advisory: New Waived Tests and Billing Codes

Deeming Authority for JCAHO Hospital Accreditation Renewed

In Memoriam: Joan Hughes Logue, Lab Industry Trailblazer

Providers Get More Time to Meet PECOS Payment Policy