(Reston, VA - November 20, 2002) - Today, the American Academy of Audiology issued an update to its members on two important issues:
Medicare Physician Fee Schedule Delayed
The Medicare Physician Fee Schedule, which determines Medicare Part B reimbursement paid to physicians, audiologists, and other non-physician practitioners, was not published on November 1 as anticipated and its publishing date has been delayed. The American Medical Association and other medical and health care provider organizations have been pressing Congress to provide a legislative fix or halt of the expected 4.4% cut in Medicare payments that is expected to take affect after January 1, 2003. On a Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Open Forum conference call on Tuesday, CMS staff indicated that the agency hopes to publish the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule on December 1, 2002 with an implementation date of February 1, 2003. Payments for health care providers are expected to be cut by 12% over the next three years without further corrective action by Congress or the Administration. To find out how Medicare cuts affect your state, please visit https://www.ama-assn.org/ama/pub/category/6931.html
Tympanometry Denials Resolved
Robert Hahn, The Academy's counsel, recently contacted the Medical Director for First Coast Service Options, the Medicare carrier for Connecticut and Florida, in response to members concerns with denials for 92567 tympanometry where claims were denied for any diagnosis other than "conductive hearing loss." Hahn, Academy staff, and Academy members were successful in advocating for a change in the Local Medical Review Policy. As of October 23, 2003, additional diagnosis codes have been added to the "ICD-9-CM Codes that Support Medical Necessity." Please contact Jodi Chappell, the Academy's Director of Health Care Policy, at jchappell@audiology.org or call 703-790-8466 x1032 for more information on this local policy change.
The American Academy of Audiology, the world's largest professional organization of audiologists, is dedicated to providing quality hearing care services through professional development, education, research and increased public awareness of hearing disorders. To learn more about the audiology profession and how audiologists are helping the 28 million Americans who suffer from hearing loss, please visit The Academy's web site at www.audiology.org.
