WEDI wraps up ICD-10 summit with list of objectives

RESTON, Va. — The afternoon session of the Workgroup for Electronic Data Interchange summit on the ICD-10 delay addressed concerns shared by insurance companies, healthcare providers and vendors of information technology and other products during the morning session.

Finding a way to balance the desire for a smooth transition with the uniform adoption of ICD-10 use proved challenging due to a number of confounding factors.

One key topic was concern that, once a firm date for implementation of the new coding system is close, sharing data and managing claims could be very difficult if not all stakeholders are ready for the change. Concerns were shared that some vendors and physicians are not ready, which is impeding testing by major health insurance providers.

Another major concern expressed by numerous representatives from insurance and technical providers was the need to provide information to physicians in the hope that they will embrace the new system.

Several representatives from different organizations expressed the opinion that CMS should lead the charge to educate providers, particularly because CMS is behind the changeover.

Kathryn Eiler of the Professional Association of Health Care Office Management (PAHCOM) told the audience, “I think if CMS [and medical societies] can get the message out to physicians, then we can get a long way” toward bringing all stakeholders closer to readiness for implementation.

Toward the development of a roadmap for stakeholders, participants decided that there is a need to use incentives for vendors and to promote the benefits of the ICD-10 system to physicians. Information should be provided to both groups to develop a better understanding of the ramifications of not moving forward, which would encourage them to get up to speed on the transition. The development of a list of clearly defined milestones, written in concise, unambiguous language, was also identified as a clear need for an action plan going forward.

Because some physicians are overwhelmed by the large number of new codes, it is important that the codes are narrowed down to the 100 to 200 that specialists are most likely to use. It was also recognized that identifying other factors that contribute to opposition to implementation could be useful for creating dialog among physicians and other stakeholders. – by Shirley Pulawski