National Version 5010 Testing Week took place from Aug. 22 to Aug. 26, and CMS reported there were no significant errors. Stanley Nachimson, principal of Nachimson Advisors, recently spoke in a "Talk Ten Tuesday" webinar sponsored by ICD10monitor, and while National Version 5010 Testing Week had positive indicators, the scene is still not rosy for all providers who must use the Version 5010 transaction standards by Jan. 1, 2012.
The good news
Mr. Nachimson said the best news to take out of National Version 5010 Testing Week aside from the lack of errors was the large increase in trading partners and test files from the National Version 5010 Testing Day in June. During National Testing Day, there were a total of 349 Medicare fee-for-service trading partners and providers with 974 test files. During National Testing Week, there were a total of 1,252 trading partners and providers. Naturally, there would be more participants in an expanded testing period, but the test files saw a large increase — there were 67,782 test files submitted, nearly 70 times the amount of National Testing Day.
The bad news
However, Mr. Nachimson said the testing week was not a resounding success despite the absence of errors. While the 1,252 trading partners may include some clearinghouses that represent several other providers, he said the total participation was a fairly small percentage of healthcare entities that actually need to move forward with Version 5010. "I'd be a little concerned that not enough folks are actively participating in testing with Medicare," Mr. Nachimson said. "Testing is absolutely critical for any provider to assure they've done implementation correctly and to make sure they can be paid as of Jan. 1 and beyond."
As of Jan. 1, CMS will only process electronic claims of providers who are on Version 5010, and for those worried about ICD-10 and the setbacks of getting paid, Version 5010 will only be a preview, he said.
Another problem that may be unforeseen — and that National Testing Week does not address — is the potential backup of providers who will be testing as time winds down, Mr. Nachimson said. With less than three months before the "go-live" date, he said there probably is not enough time for providers to complete adequate testing of all electronic transactions. Consequently, many providers will be inundating their software vendors or clearinghouses with test files, and providers may not be giving themselves enough time to receive sufficient feedback on their test results. "There's really a problem if everyone tries to test during the last month, and there may be a problem in getting support and being able to take in all test files and respond in a timely manner if there are problems," Mr. Nachimson said.
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The good news
Mr. Nachimson said the best news to take out of National Version 5010 Testing Week aside from the lack of errors was the large increase in trading partners and test files from the National Version 5010 Testing Day in June. During National Testing Day, there were a total of 349 Medicare fee-for-service trading partners and providers with 974 test files. During National Testing Week, there were a total of 1,252 trading partners and providers. Naturally, there would be more participants in an expanded testing period, but the test files saw a large increase — there were 67,782 test files submitted, nearly 70 times the amount of National Testing Day.
The bad news
However, Mr. Nachimson said the testing week was not a resounding success despite the absence of errors. While the 1,252 trading partners may include some clearinghouses that represent several other providers, he said the total participation was a fairly small percentage of healthcare entities that actually need to move forward with Version 5010. "I'd be a little concerned that not enough folks are actively participating in testing with Medicare," Mr. Nachimson said. "Testing is absolutely critical for any provider to assure they've done implementation correctly and to make sure they can be paid as of Jan. 1 and beyond."
As of Jan. 1, CMS will only process electronic claims of providers who are on Version 5010, and for those worried about ICD-10 and the setbacks of getting paid, Version 5010 will only be a preview, he said.
Another problem that may be unforeseen — and that National Testing Week does not address — is the potential backup of providers who will be testing as time winds down, Mr. Nachimson said. With less than three months before the "go-live" date, he said there probably is not enough time for providers to complete adequate testing of all electronic transactions. Consequently, many providers will be inundating their software vendors or clearinghouses with test files, and providers may not be giving themselves enough time to receive sufficient feedback on their test results. "There's really a problem if everyone tries to test during the last month, and there may be a problem in getting support and being able to take in all test files and respond in a timely manner if there are problems," Mr. Nachimson said.
Related Articles on Version 5010:
How to Make Sure Your Hospital is Level II Compliant With Version 5010CMS Reports National Version 5010 Testing Week Had No Significant Errors
Lag in HIPAA 5010 Preparation Does Not Bode Well for ICD-10