Health Information Management

CMS appears poised to release new ICD-10 date

APCs Insider, June 20, 2014

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CMS promised in May that a new ICD-10 implementation date would be revealed in the "near future," and it appears the date could be revealed imminently.
This week, CMS submitted a final rule, "Administrative Simplification: Change to the Compliance Date for the International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision Medical Data Code Sets (CMS-0043-IFC)," to the Office of Management and Budget, the final step before publication in the Federal Register.
CMS classified the submission as a final rule, despite saying in May the implementation date would be released in an interim final rule. This distinction means no public comments will be taken and it will not be revised after publication, becoming effective immediately.
It's widely expected the rule will announce October 1, 2015, as the new implementation date. In addition to being the earliest CMS is allowed to implement ICD-10, the agency has been referencing that date in several of its latest publications. In MLN Matters® SE1421, released this week for advice on accessing ICD-10 LCDs, CMS notes that "it is expected that the 10/01/2014 Effective Dates will be changed to 10/01/2015 in mid-2014."
The sooner CMS releases the date, the better providers will be able to plan for implementation. Since ICD-10 was officially delayed April 1 by Congress, providers have been left in limbo while trying to determine how to best continue training and education efforts for a major initiative without an implementation date.
While most providers would have simply preferred to begin using the new code set in 2014, an implementation date less than 16 months away should hopefully spur organizations to refocus on ICD-10 training and education and maintain the momentum they had before the delay.  



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