HHS has reduced the backlog of Medicare appeals at the Office of Medicare Hearings and Appeals by more than 69 percent, according to a March 26 status report update.
As of March 26, a total of 131,961 appeals are pending at the office. This is down from 426,594.
The reduction is in response to a 2018 federal court ruling that established an annual baseline for cutting the Medicare appeals at the administrative judge level, according to the American Hospital Association.
"HHS met the reduction target for the first quarter of FY 2021 and is on track to meet the subsequent reduction targets set forth in the Court’s November 1, 2018 order," HHS said in the status report.