CMS proposes 'flat fee' Medicare payment plan: 8 insights

1. The "Patients Over Paperwork" plan combines four levels of paperwork required for reimbursement and four levels of payments into one form and one flat fee per appointment.
2. There would still be separate filing systems for new and established patients under the plan.
3. The plan is open for public comment until early September.
4. The CMS plan offers a flat fee per office visit with a patient regardless of the physician's specialty.
5. The plan may lead fewer medical students to opt for specialties that require complex patient management.
6. Under the proposed system, physicians who need to spend more time with patients can file for an "add-on" payment of $67 per appointment.
7. If the Medicare payment changes take effect, private insurers may follow suit to use common billing procedures.
8. CMS plans to enact Medicare fee schedule changes Jan. 1, 2019

Source: Becker's Spine Review
Source URL: https://www.beckersspine.com/orthopedic-spine-practices-impr...