Tag: Prior Authorization
New! Search Tool Helps Streamline Prior Auths
Prior authorizations are often cited as one of the top burdens for healthcare professionals. To help streamline your workflow and save time, Humana has launched a new prior authorization search tool.
Now you can search by CPT® code, procedure or drug name to determine if authorization is required. You also can find guidance on how to submit medical and pharmacy authorizations.
Updated Clinical Prior Authorization
Assistance Chart Now Available
An update to the Clinical Prior Authorization Assistance Chart is available. The chart identifies which clinical prior authorization each MCO uses and whether the MCO uses all or some of the steps in the evaluation process.
New Prior Authorization Ruling Applies to Some,
But Not All.
In December 2022, I reported on a proposed rule from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) about updating requirements for prior authorization (PA), a process that many providers and patients consider to be a roadblock to obtaining care. Now, CMS has published the Final Rule (020824) on this topic, which contains significant requirements for health plans to follow to improve the process.
The rule only applies to a set of Impacted Payers: Medicare Advantage (MA) organizations, state Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) Fee-for-Service (FFS) programs, Medicaid managed care plans, CHIP managed care entities, and Qualified Health Plan (QHP) issuers on the Federally Facilitated Exchanges (FFEs).
Legally, these are the plans for which CMS can set requirements. However, it is expected that many commercial plans will voluntarily adopt some of these provisions.
The rule also adopts a new measure for Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS)-eligible clinicians under the Promoting Interoperability performance category of MIPS, as well as for eligible hospitals and critical access hospitals (CAHs), under the Medicare Promoting Interoperability Program.
For more information and detail, follow this link to the article written by Stanley Nachimson, MS
Superior Prior Auth Changes Eff. 1/1/2024
For some services, utilization review is necessary to determine the medical necessity and appropriateness of a covered health care service for Superior HealthPlan’s managed care members. For those services, utilization review is performed BEFORE (prior authorization), during (concurrent review) or after (retrospective review) the service is delivered.
CMS Efforts to Reduce Prior Auth Burden
Insurers must halve the length of time they take to respond to prior authorization requests
Insurers may no longer require preapproval for emergency behavioral healthcare.
Insurers have to explain denials and publish data on their decisions.
Patients in active treatment who change carriers must be given at least 90 days before the new insurer can require another prior authorization.
Click the below articles for more information.
Billing Codes Reported to Payor May Differ from Codes Authorized.
Have you ever requested authorization on a particular procedure (CPT Code) only to find out afterward there are additional codes or even a totally different CPT code than you requested?
It doesn’t help that only some payors allow for a retro authorization (auth)
and usually they have a short turnaround time.
Below are some tips from the MGMA Community.
From a Surgical Practice:
- Have the Surgical attendee to inform the Prior Auth. Manager or Coder as soon as the procedure is completed.
- The coder should compare procedure notes to the auth prior to billing.
From an ENT Practice:
- Have the physician give you all the possible CPT codes that could be performed and precert. them to be on the safe side.
From a Gastro Practice:
- Again request an auth. for all possible code combinations from the payor.
From an Ortho:
- Create a report that compares billed codes to approved codes.
- Then hold the claim for business days to make certain you have time to reach out to insurers and make adjustments.
- They have found that most insurers want it updated before they process the claim. Which is what the office wants also because it prevents refiling. Even if it takes additional months to get the prior auth. changed.
Summarized:
- Authorize all possible codes for the procedure.
Work with your insurance follow up team to identify our opportunities. This may lead to updates on how you order certain procedures. An update to both system and workflow.
- Timely charge capture. Because retro auth windows are short for some payors, it is imperative to understand if the codes being captured is different from codes authorized.
Same as #1. You have to assess how the charge lag is contributing to the denials.
- A process to compare codes being captured vs authorized and request retro auth.
This concept is for review before charges are submitted. Compare codes in charge sessions vs the codes authorized and flag sessions that have discrepancies so retro auth can be pursued.
New Claim Tool for UHC
TrackIt
There are many reasons to love TrackIt. But this time of year, its ability to save you time ranks pretty high. Need to add information to a claim or check a prior authorization status? Skip the phone or waiting for the mail. You can find all that and more in TrackIt. The tool makes it easy to stay on top of your UnitedHealthcare tasks by showing what items need attention, so you can take action in real time — and get back to your holiday to‑do list faster.
Cigna Medicare HSConnect Portal
Cigna MA has reported two known issues with HSConnect.
- Referrals are pending unnecessarily.
- The procedure start and end date are defaulting to the same day.
An expected date for resolution has not been provided.
But there is good news (tongue in cheek) the PHE has been extended. Therefore, referrals are still waived. Those items requiring precertification will continue to need an authorization.
UHC Prior Auth Going Paperless
UHC won’t be sending prior authorization and clinical decision letters by mail starting April 1.
This includes:
- Pre-service/prior authorization decision letters
- Inpatient review letters, including concurrent, retrospective, length of stay and level of care
- Extension for lack of clinical information letters
- Complex care management and OrthoNet letters available in Document Library
Instead, you can view them exclusively online 24/7 through either the UnitedHealthcare Provider Portal or an Application Programming Interface (API) system-to-system data feed.
Superior Prior Auth Requirements
Superior will be ending any active prior authorizations for Synagis® effective February 1, 2022 for all Superior Medicaid (STAR, STAR Health, STAR Kids, STAR+PLUS) and CHIP members to align with HHS guidance. As the season has ended, claims for Synagis® will no longer adjudicate pursuant to the end of the season per VDP guidance.
Superior HealthPlan will require prior authorization for CPT code 81519, Oncology Breast MRNA, for Medicaid, CHIP and Superior HealthPlan Medicare-Medicaid Plan (MMP) members. Superior HealthPlan will utilize Change Healthcare’s InterQual as the medical necessity review criteria. Effective on May 1, 2022
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