The official ICD-10 implementation date is one month from today, and providers are still in the process of preparing for the potential impact on the revenue cycle.
Amy Amick, President, MedAssets Revenue Cycle Management: In July, MedAssets participated in the third round of ICD-10 end-to-end testing conducted by CMS, submitting provider claims on their behalf to test the readiness of workflows for the upcoming transition on Oct. 1. We expected to have a high success rate, having consistently achieved a 99 percent acceptance on previous testing rounds, and we were not disappointed. Of the 699 claims submitted in round three, it is worth noting that there were zero rejects related to the new ICD-10 coding standard, with only four claims rejected overall. In contrast, CMS reported that the total acceptance rate for the second round of testing came in at 88 percent on total claims, with two percent rejected for inappropriate ICD-10 codes.
We worked side-by-side, collaborating every step of the way to develop rock solid mitigation plans. With teams dedicated to edit research, claims management, account management, payer and quality assurance, no detail went unchecked. It is this kind of collaboration that can help hospitals make a smooth transition to ICD-10 versus being buried in denials and rejections, which CMS predicts could spike as high as 200 percent during the initial transition.
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