CMS announces ICD-10 testing weeks

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has announced that it will conduct three weeks of ICD-10 testing.

The testing weeks will be:

• Nov. 17-21, 2014

• March 2-6, 2015

• June 1-5, 2015

CMS says the testing is to reassure providers that the systems will be ready for the Oct. 1, 2015 implementation deadline, which was officially confirmed by the Department of Health and Human Services earlier this month.

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“While submitters may acknowledgement test ICD-10 claims at any time through implementation, the ICD-10 testing weeks have been created to generate awareness and interest, and to instill confidence in the provider community that CMS and the MACs are ready and prepared for the ICD-10 implementation,” the CMS release said.

The new code set was originally scheduled to be implemented October 1, 2014, but Congress included the one-year delay in its patch to the sustainable growth rate formula earlier this year.

The extension has given providers additional time to prepare. A recent survey by the American Health Information Management Association and the eHealth Initiatives found that of the 349 providers surveyed, 41.4% said they will be ready to do end-to-end testing by the end of the year. However, cost remains a top concern, as 38% of respondents said they expect their revenue to decrease during the first year of implementation.

Get ready for October 2015 by visiting our ICD-10 Resource Center