On Thu Feb 16, CMS will release a national provider Comparative Billing Report (CBR) addressing Advanced Diagnostic Imaging.
CBRs, produced by Safeguard Services under contract with CMS, contain actual data-driven tables and graphs with an explanation of findings that compare a provider's billing and payment patterns to those of their peers located in their state and across the nation. These reports are not available to anyone except the providers who receive them. To ensure privacy, CMS presents only summary billing information; no patient or case-specific data is included. These reports are an example of a tool that helps providers better understand applicable Medicare billing rules and improve the level of care they furnish to their Medicare patients. CMS has received feedback from a number of providers that this kind of data is very helpful to them and encouraged us to produce more CBRs and make them available to providers. For more information and to review a sample of the Advanced Diagnostic Imaging CBR, please visit the CBR Services website at www.CBRservices.com<http://www.CBRservices.com> or call the SafeGuard Services' Provider Help Desk, CBR Support Team at 530-896-7080. ________________________________ Flu Season is Here! While seasonal flu outbreaks can happen as early as October, flu activity usually peaks in January. Remind your patients that annual vaccination is recommended for optimal protection. Medicare pays for the seasonal flu vaccine and its administration for seniors and others with Medicare with no co-pay or deductible. Healthcare workers, who may spread the flu to high risk patients, should get vaccinated too. Don't forget to immunize yourself and your staff. Protect your patients. Protect your family. Protect yourself. Get the Flu Vaccine-Not the Flu. Remember - The flu vaccine plus its administration are covered Part B benefits. CMS has posted the 2011-2012 seasonal flu vaccine payment limits at http://www.CMS.gov/McrPartBDrugAvgSalesPrice/10_VaccinesPricing.asp. Note that the flu vaccine is NOT a Part D-covered drug. For more information on coverage and billing of the flu vaccine and its administration, as well as related educational provider resources, visit http://www.CMS.gov/MLNProducts/35_PreventiveServices.asp and http://www.cms.gov/immunizations. ________________________________ Note: If you have problems accessing any hyperlink in this message, please copy and paste the URL into your Internet browser. If you know someone who would like to subscribe to a Medicare Fee-For-Service (FFS) provider listserv, go to (http://www.cms.gov/prospmedicarefeesvcpmtgen/downloads/Provider_Listservs.pdf). If you would like to unsubscribe from a specific provider listserv, please go to (https://list.nih.gov/cgi-bin/wa.exe?INDEX) to unsubscribe or to leave the appropriate listserv. Please DO NOT respond to this email. This email is a service of CMS and routed through an electronic mail server to communicate Medicare policy and operational changes and/or updates. Responses to this email are not routed to CMS personnel. Inquiries may be sent by going to (http://www.cms.gov/ContactCMS). Thank you.
