CMS announced a proposed regulation on April 9 on HIPAA Administrative Simplification. The rule proposes a HIPAA standard health plan identifier and delays required compliance by one year– from Oct. 1, 2013, to Oct. 1, 2014– for new codes used to classify diseases and health problems. These codes, known as the International Classification of Diseases, 10th Edition diagnosis and procedure codes, or ICD-10, will include new procedures and diagnoses and improve the quality of information available for quality improvement and payment purposes.
Many provider groups have expressed serious concerns about their ability to meet the Oct. 1, 2013 compliance date. The proposed change in the compliance date for ICD-10 would give providers and other covered entities more time to prepare and fully test their systems to ensure a smooth and coordinated transition to these new code sets.
This proposed rule is the third in a series of administrative simplification rules in the new health care law. HHS released the first in July of 2011 and the second in January of 2012, and plans to announce more in the coming months. More information on the proposed rule is available on fact sheets at http://www.cms.gov/apps/media/fact_sheets.asp. Comments are due 30 days after publication in the Federal Register.