Form 855 changes would ease red tape

Enrollment form would be more user-friendly

After months of negotiating with physician representatives, the Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA) has finally developed its proposed changes to the Medicare enrollment form, Form 855.

Key changes include:

• Institution of new separate applications for individual health care practitioners; health care organizations that will bill Medicare carriers; and health care providers that bill Medicare intermediaries.

• Obtaining the education compliance information it needs from attachments submitted with the application. As a result, individuals will not be required to duplicate this information within the application.

• Improving the Change of Ownership (CHOW) section to help capture when a CHOW has been made and how a current owner can terminate its enrollment.

• Eliminating the requirement to use Form HCFA-855C to make changes.

• Eliminating the requirement to collect prior information about the applicant’s Medicare billing numbers, or carrier/intermediary. HCFA has also eliminated the board certification requirement.

• Eliminating the need to capture information on the same person if he or she was an owner and managing or directing employee.

• Allowing a practitioner to state that all of his or her services are being provided in a group setting. As a result, the individual practitioner will have fewer data elements to complete, and most information will be captured on the group’s application. Rendering services in a fixed location will be separated from those rendered in a mobile or portable setting.

• Eliminating information concerning parent or joint venture or subsidiary information.

• Eliminating the need to request a billing agreement with every application. The application incorporates specific billing agreement questions to determine if an applicant understands and is meeting the appropriate regulation.