The July 6 implementation date of Internet-based provider enrollment
chain and ownership system (PECOS) placed added pressure on DMEPOS suppliers to
inform those who have not yet registered in the system to do so. Some of that
pressure has been calmed as CMS has once again delayed the implementation date
of PECOS for further testing and to allow more practitioners to register in the
system.
“We delayed the implementation of Internet-based PECOS for
suppliers of DMEPOS from July 6 to this fall to allow additional time for
development and testing,” Peter Ashkenaz, deputy director of media affairs
for CMS told O&P Business News.
While the delay to implement changes that would have automatically
rejected claims based on referrals made by physicians who have not yet
registered in PECOS has come as a relief for the O&P industry, questions
still linger. CMS did not provide a new specific deadline date for
implementation in their June 30 announcement. And while claims should process
as usual even if a referring physician is not enrolled in PECOS, whether or not
those claims made after July 6 are subject to recoupment has yet to be
determined.
