CAH II Physicians Now Eligible for Medicare EHR Incentive Program

Physicians who assign their reimbursement and billing to a Critical Access Hospital (CAH) under Method II (CAH IIs) are now eligible to participate in the Medicare Electronic Health Record (EHR) Incentive Program, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced.

CMS states it is implementing system changes to capture CAH II’s National Provider Identifier (NPI) and line-of-service payment information which will ensure claims are tied to the specific services rendered.

According to CMS, CAH II physicians can begin participation in calendar year (CY) 2013. However, due to the time required to implement the system changes, they will not be able to submit attestations until January 2014.

CAH II physicians will need to register and attest to demonstrating meaningful use of certified EHR technology in order to receive their incentive payment, according to the CMS fact sheet. All EPs, including CAH II physicians, in their first year of participation must start by demonstrating Stage 1 of meaningful use. The stages of meaningful use progress as the program continues.

CAH II physicians who begin participation in CY 2013 will be eligible to earn a maximum Medicare EHR incentive payment of $39,000, CMS reports. Like all other eligible professionals and eligible hospitals, physicians who assign their billing to CAH Method II are subject by law to payment adjustments should they fail to demonstrate meaningful use on an annual basis, beginning in 2015.

For more information, visit the CMS EHR website.