ICD-10 conversion update

HHS has proposed requiring HIPAA covered entities to implement the new X12 5010 transaction standards on April 1, 2010 and the ICD-10 code sets on October 1, 2011. The comment period ends next Tuesday April 21. A broad coalition of industry members advocate adoption of the stretched out timeline recommended by two HHS advisors, NCVHS and WEDI.

The ICD-10 Coalition which is composed of the AMA and other health care provider associations has released a Nachimson Advisors report that finds that

• For a typical small practice, Nachimson Advisors estimates the total cost impact of the ICD-10 mandate as $83,290.
• For a typical medium practice, Nachimson Advisors estimates the total cost impact of the ICD-10 mandate as $285,195
• For a typical large practice, Nachimson Advisors estimates the total cost impact of the ICD-10 mandate as more than $2.7 million.

Accelerating the change will only increase the impact of the cost burden on providers and payors and could lead to a systemic meltdown as BCBSA has warned.

Healthcare IT News reports today that the CMS administrator gave Zen-like advice on this major issue:

"Be serious about the date."

That's the advice of Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Service Acting Administrator Kerry Weems, when asked Tuesday about how CMS could help drive the conversion of healthcare diagnostic and billing codes from ICD-9 to ICD-10 code sets.