New Option for Medicare Cost Report Submission

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has announced that starting in March, providers will have the option to submit Medicare cost reports through a new national portal. CMS intends to offer training in March and April on the new e-Filing system, which will be available for cost reporting periods ending on or after Dec. 31, 2017. In announcing the forthcoming option, CMS stated that the agency is committed to decreasing the amount of time and money that providers spend on mandated compliance and is interested in increasing the number of tasks that can be done electronically.

Currently, all Medicare Part A providers, with the exception of outpatient physical therapy providers and comprehensive outpatient rehabilitation facilities, are required to file an annual Medicare cost report, which must be submitted electronically through an approved software vendor. Reports are due within five months of the cost reporting fiscal year end or 30 days after a valid Provider Statistical and Reimbursement (PS&R) report is sent to the provider by National Government Services (NGS), the Medicare Fiscal Intermediary serving New York State. Members should keep in mind that the threshold for low-utilization reports has changed and is now available only if a provider’s annual net Medicare Part A and B revenue is lower than $200,000 (with lower threshold amounts for FQHC and RHC providers). The NGS Cost Report resources page is available here.

Contact: Darius Kirstein, dkirstein@leadingageny.org, 518-867-8841