End of the Road: ICD-10 Grace Period Expires in October

The Toolkit
In addition to the work that practices have done to date, there are other ways to help protect against practice disruptions after Oct. 1, 2016. One resource is the CMS ICD-10 Next Steps Toolkit.

The primary recommendation in the toolkit is to measure KPIs, such as claims acceptance/rejection, coder productivity, payer edits, or incomplete or missing diagnosis codes. The purpose of tracking and comparing these and other KPIs is to identify and correct any problems with productivity, reimbursement or claims submission. Tips include tracking KPIs separately for each payer and comparing metrics over calendar years to account for seasonal fluctuations.

With careful planning and attention to detail, the expectation is that the end of the grace period will go unnoticed.

Kimberly J. Retzlaff is a freelance medical journalist based in Denver.

The ICD-10 page on the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) website features a countdown clock that shows the time left until Oct. 1, 2015, the date on which compliance with the new code set becomes mandatory. By the time this issue goes to press, the clock will read 90 or fewer days. Time…

As the Oct. 1 deadline to transition to ICD-10 approaches, the CMS has released multiple resources, including a joint guidance statement with the AMA that details one year of claims leniency to help physicians adjust to the new coding system and smooth the transition process…

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