Accreditation Deadlines Surface for New Suppliers; 'Don't Drag Your Feet,' Accreditors Warn

ATLANTA--After announcing Sept. 30, 2009, as the deadline by which all DMEPOS providers must be accredited, CMS officials at an Open Door Forum Dec. 19 refused to give out information on additional dates. But the accreditation deadlines for new suppliers were revealed just two days later in a list serv for pharmacists--and the dates are raising questions.

According to the list-serv notice, sent Dec. 21 and confirmed by HomeCare Monday through CMS' Office of the Administrator, DMEPOS suppliers who enroll with the National Supplier Clearinghouse (NSC) before March 1, 2008, will have until Jan. 1, 2009, to obtain accreditation. On or after March 1, 2008, those seeking NSC enrollment must be accredited prior to submitting an application.

The latter stipulation--requiring that providers be accredited before submitting an application to receive an NSC number--has raised some issues.

"[Becoming accredited] includes gathering data on your Medicare beneficiaries, but how can you gather data on billing and collections and beneficiary satisfaction if you don't have any beneficiaries?" questioned industry consultant Mary Ellen Conway, president of Capital Healthcare Group, Bethesda, Md. In addition, she pointed out, "You can't become a Medicaid provider until you have acquired your Medicare number, so no Medicaid patients, either."

Mary Nicholas, executive director of the Waterloo, Iowa-based HealthCare Quality Association on Accreditation--one of 10 accrediting organizations approved by CMS--said she is awaiting clarification from the agency on exactly how getting accredited prior to receiving an NSC number would work, but she fears such a process might have a chilling effect on HME.

"I am concerned for the growth of the industry," Nicholas said.

While the requirements for new suppliers have generated new questions, the "drop-dead" accreditation date of Sept. 30, 2009, has rekindled old concerns. The deadline may be 21 months away, but accreditors and consultants are already warning HME providers not to drag their feet. Any delay could cause last-minute applicants to be left out in the cold, they said, especially with the second round of competitive bidding looming.

Although she is relieved CMS has allowed a "manageable" amount of time for existing providers to complete the accreditation process, "you may not have as much time as you think," Conway cautioned. "Accreditation generally takes between four and six months, and part of that has to include time for the unannounced survey, which can take another 45 to 90 days.