CMS Issues Guidelines for the Nonessential Medical Procedures

COVID-19 has taken over the world. The coronavirus emergency has become so big that the regular medical procedures have taken a back seat until the situation gets any better.

CMS – The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid has announced that all the nonessential surgical, diagnostic, and dental procedures should be delayed during the novel corona outbreak.

The reason for it is that the number of corona-affected patients are increasing and so is the demand for more doctors. As the physicians are participating in the fight against the pandemic, it is difficult for them to continue with the regular procedures. Moreover, they can also save on their personal safety equipment, tools, ventilators, and beds.

On the other hand, amidst the coronavirus lockdown, it would be difficult for medical billing services to compile claims when their resources can be used to document hundreds of cases of COVID-19.

CMS admits that this step will be helpful to treat those, who are more in need of quality healthcare. The coronavirus spread can only be limited when everybody takes charge of his safety and others around him. A conclusive step towards a corona-free nation would be that clinicians advise their patients to stay at home unless absolutely necessary to minimize their risk of virus exposure.

They should encourage patients to follow the government guidelines to slow down or contain the risks of COVID-19.

The Impact of Limiting Regular Medical Procedures

The CMS-issued recommendations already come with an implementable plan for hospitals and medical practices for immediate COVID-19 response action.  The organization has also touched upon factors in which physicians may postpone nonessential surgeries.

The factors include:

• Patient risk factor leading to the urgency of medical procedure
• Availability of equipment/ beds/ staff

The recommendations will be compliant to assist emergency patients and save resources for corona effects. The decision to proceed with the dental, medical, and surgical procedures will be taken by the local clinician, patient, hospital, state, and local health departments.

All of these actions taken to assist medical billing services and clinicians are part of the White House Task Force efforts.

What the Bigger Picture Looks Like?

Doctors and other healthcare staff are under great threat of having COVID-19. They are acting as front liners due to their nature of jobs. The recommendations will also be a step towards their safety. Ultimately, every healthcare organization has to implement these strategies so that, we don’t face handling the worsening situation with limited resources.

American Medical Association (AMA) also appreciates this step by CMS. In this way, healthcare organizations will be preparing for COVID-19 patients efficiently. Whereas, healthcare leaders will be strategizing to better support physicians and patients.

CMS offers much flexibility in its program for healthcare providers to consider the benefits of this suggestion. Medical billing companies can also manage their duties accordingly.