In less than five months standards for electronic health care transactions change from Version 4010/4010A1 to Version 5010. The NCMS reminds physicians and other health care providers that the Version 5010 Transition is for all HIPAA-covered entities, not just those who submit Medicare claims, as explained on the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) website.
Unlike Version 4010, Version 5010 accommodates the new ICD-10 code sets, and is a required preliminary step for the use of the new ICD-10 medical code sets for medical diagnosis and inpatient procedure coding. The upgrade will require system and business changes throughout the health care industry, including physician practices.
Don’t delay—act today
NCMS encourages entities affected by the Version 5010 Transition to take the following steps recommended by CMS before the compliance deadline of January 1, 2012:
- Conduct internal and external transactions within your organizations and with your billing partners (payers, vendors, clearinghouses and providers).
- Undertake external testing now in order to make sure you are able to send and receive compliant transactions effectively.
- Identify any potential issues that may arise during testing and allow the necessary time to address them.
Updates and helpful resources on Version 5010 and ICD-10 can be found at https://www.cms.gov/ICD10/.
