provider-based departments (PBD)

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The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has finalized Medicare Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS) and Ambulatory Surgical Center (ASC) rates and policies for calendar year 2019.  Notably, CMS adopted some – but not all – of its proposed policies intended to promote more “site-neutral payments” for different types of providers.

Hospital Outpatient Provisions

CMS adopted a 1.35% update to Medicare OPPS rates for 2019, with the update reduced by 2.0% for hospitals that fail to meet quality reporting requirements.  Payment changes for individual procedures vary.

In the final rule, CMS reiterated its concern that “current payment incentives, rather than patient acuity or medical necessity, are affecting site-of-service decision-making.”  To that end, CMS adopted several policies intended to promote site neutrality, particularly with regard to off-campus hospital provider-based departments (PBD) that are “excepted” under section 603 of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015.  Section 603 provides that effective January 1, 2017 certain off-campus PBDs are generally paid under the physician fee schedule (PFS), rather than the typically higher-paying OPPS, unless an exception applies.  For 2019, CMS finalized policies to:

  • Reduce payment for clinic visit services (G0463, Hospital outpatient clinic visit for assessment and management of a patient) to a PFS-equivalent rate when provided at an “excepted” PBD. CMS notes that the clinic visit is the most common service billed under the OPPS, and by removing the “payment differential that may influence site-of-service decisionmaking, we anticipate an associated decrease in the volume of clinic visits provided in the excepted off-campus PBD setting.”  In response to comments, CMS is phasing in the payment reduction over two years, with the rate for HCPCS G0463 reduced by 30% for CY 2019 and reduced by 60% in 2020.  In other words, these excepted PBDs will be paid approximately 70% of the OPPS rate for clinic visit services in CY 2019, which CMS expects will results in CY 2019 savings of about $380 million (including $80 million in savings to Medicare beneficiaries).
  • Apply to excepted PBDs a current policy that reduces OPPS payment for separately payable, nonpass-through drugs and biologicals (other than vaccines) purchased through the 340B drug discount program from average sales price (ASP) plus 6% to ASP minus 22.5% (with certain exceptions).

CMS did not adopt its proposal to revise payment when an excepted PBD expands into new lines of service, although CMS stated that it will monitor expansion of services in off-campus PBDs and, if appropriate, the agency may propose future rulemaking in this area.  More broadly, CMS repeats its interest in future rulemaking “to systematically control for unnecessary increases in the volume of other hospital outpatient department services,” while maintaining “beneficiary access to new innovations.”

Other policies adopted in the final rule include the following: 
Continue Reading CMS Finalizes Medicare OPPS, ASC Rates and Policies for 2019

CMS has issued its proposed rule to update Medicare Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS) and Ambulatory Surgical Center (ASC) Payment System rates and policies for calendar year (CY) 2019.  In addition to providing routine annual updates, the proposed rule includes several provisions intended to encourage “site-neutral payments” for different types of providers.  CMS also proposes a change to the basis for updating ASC rates that has long been sought by stakeholders.  CMS will accept comments on the proposed rule until September 24, 2018.

Hospital Outpatient Provisions

CMS proposes a 1.25% update to Medicare OPPS rates for 2019, reflecting an expected 2.8% market basket increase that is partly offset by both a statutory 0.75 percentage point reduction and a 0.8% multi-factor productivity (MFP) reduction.  The update for hospitals that fail to meet quality reporting requirements is reduced by 2.0% points.  Payment changes for individual procedures vary.

In the proposed rule, CMS emphasizes its interest in addressing payment differentials that the agency believes drives site-of-service decisions, especially between the physician’s office and hospital outpatient department settings, and increases costs to the Medicare program and beneficiaries.  In particular, CMS targets certain off-campus hospital provider-based departments (PBD) that are “excepted” under section 603 of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015.  Section 603 provides that effective for services provided on or after January 1, 2017, certain off-campus PBDs are generally paid under the physician fee schedule (PFS), rather than the typically higher-paying OPPS, unless an exception applies.  For 2019, CMS proposes:

  • Paying a PFS equivalent rate for clinic visit services (G0463, Hospital outpatient clinic visit for assessment and management of a patient) when provided at an “excepted” PBD. CMS observes that clinic visits are the most common service billed under the OPPS, and this policy is expected to save approximately $760 million in FY 2019, including $150 million in reduced beneficiary copayments.
  • CMS proposes to apply to exempted PBDs a current policy that reduces OPPS payment for separately payable, nonpass-through drugs and biologicals (other than vaccines) purchased through the 340B drug discount program from average sales price (ASP) plus 6% to ASP minus 22.5% (with certain exceptions).
  • Revising payment when an excepted PBD expands into new lines of service. Under the proposed rule, if an excepted off-campus PBD furnishes a service from one of 19 proposed clinical families of services that it did not furnish during a baseline period (November 1, 2014 through November 1, 2015), the service from the “new” family would be paid under the PFS rather than the OPPS.
  • CMS notes that it is “developing a method to systematically control for unnecessary increases in the volume of other hospital outpatient department services.” In the meantime, CMS requests comments on alternative approaches to controlling unnecessary volume increases, while “not impeding development or beneficiary access to new innovations.”

Other proposed provisions include the following:  
Continue Reading CMS Proposes CY 2019 Medicare OPPS, ASC Update, with Emphasis on Promoting Site-Neutrality