Coding Resource Center
February 2022
On February 11, the World Health Organization (WHO) released the international Classification of Diseases (ICD), 11th revision, coding set for WHO member countries to implement worldwide. According to their press release, 35 countries are already using ICD-11 for recording and reporting mortality and morbidity statistics. Included in this version are approximately 17,000 codes, with over […]
Bipartisan legislation was introduced to begin the process of modernizing health privacy laws. The Health Data Use and Privacy Commission Act would establish a commission to assess the current state of health data privacy and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) in an effort to address longstanding technology and security challenges posed by […]
January 2022
According to InsideHealthPolicy, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) formally announced that it will give 60 days’ notice before it ends the COVID Public Health Emergency (PHE) and its related regulatory flexibilities, which is currently set to end mid-January. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) will not state how long it plans […]
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has published an updated list of approved telehealth services for calendar year (CY) 2022. Updated as of January 5, 2022, the List of Telehealth Services for Calendar Year 2022 contains information to provide clarification on which codes are temporarily added to the list due to the public […]
Due to the COVID PHE, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) created the Acute Hospital Care at Home (AHCaH) Initiative, launched in November of 2020. This program allows Medicare-certified hospitals to treat patients with inpatient-level care at home. Hospitals have to submit a waiver of the Hospital Conditions of Participation, which require nursing […]
The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection issued a compliance bulletin and policy guidance to remind debt collectors of their obligation to comply with the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act’s (FDCPA) prohibition on “false, deceptive, or misleading representations or means in connection with the collection of any debt and unfair or unconscionable means to collect or […]
On January 14, 2022, Xavier Becerra, Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced the renewal of the public health emergency (PHE) declared due to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). The PHE was originally declared on January 31, 2020. Extensions occurred on April 21, 2020; July 25, 2020; October 23, 2020; January 7, 2021; April 15, 2021; July 19, […]
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued two final guidance documents that provide recommendations for utilizing patient perspectives in medical device clinical studies. The first is Patient Engagement in the Design and Conduct of Medical Device Clinical Studies. As outlined by the FDA, the objectives in this 11-page document are to: Help sponsors understand […]
December 2021
The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC), which advises Congress on Medicare reimbursement policies each year, has drafted recommendations for 2023 facility payments. Congress is not required to adopt MedPAC’s recommendations. As part of its draft recommendations, the panel has proposed increasing payments by 2% to acute care hospitals based on cost report data. A payment […]
In response to both physician and hospital groups lobbying to stop the scheduled Medicare payment cuts, Congress introduced a Bill on December 6, 2021, to increase physician payments under the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) for 2022. It was passed by the Senate and signed into law on December 11, 2021. This bill, entitled “The […]
