CMS is putting the finishing touches on its proposed 2012 Physician Fee Schedule and expects to release it "very shortly," in the words of Stewart Streimer, director of the agency's Provider Billing Group. This vague hint was one of the first announcements Streimer made during today's physician open door call.

You've done it -- implemented an electronic health record (EHR) system successfully, met stage 1 meaningful use requirements (all 20 of them!) and even proceeded to have your providers finish attesting using CMS's online system. Where then, is your money? The answers are in the fine print, CMS says in a new addition to its frequently asked questions website on EHR.

Your providers' performance, based on Medicare claims data for Parts A, B and D of program, will be shared with the public under a new proposed rule from CMS. Certain "qualified entities" would process the Medicare data, along with private payer data, to create public reports. This new initiative, which was made possible by the health reform law, would be similar in principle to the Hospital Compare website, CMS says in a June press release.

Independent diagnostic testing facilities are on the hook for the $505 enrollment fee that also affects durable medical equipment (DME) suppliers, according to the CMS transmittal. The fee was announced March 23 in Transmittal 371 to the Medicare Program Integrity Manual. According to the health care reform bill, the fee will be used to cover the cost of the program and to screen enrollment applications to curb fraud.

You and your peers may be able avoid the 1% e-Prescribing (e-Rx) Medicare payment penalty if you qualify for one of CMS’s new proposed hardship exemptions outlined in its May 26 proposed rule. If finalized, the wil give providers a more flexible timeline and more options to claim a hardship exemption for not being able to meet the e-Rx requirement by June 30.