Original Medicare coverage for patients in continuing care facilities can be onerous to sort through for the purchase of Durable Medical Equipment (DME) items. We are here to provide help. This article will talk about how you will find out who is eligible, which items are covered, and what to do if the patient has a Medicare Advantage Plan.
The Initial 100 Days
Nursing homes and long-term care facilities can provide for a large number of patient needs. However, if patients require the use of an item that is not being offered by the care facility or the patient is transitioning to a new facility, the foremost question to ask is how long the item will be needed. For like 100 days, Medicare Part A will cover DME claims of your patient with real Medicare. During this time, patients can rent or buy DME equipment. It is important to note that you must be able to show documentation from the patient’s doctor explaining that the DME item is necessary to improve the patient’s quality of life in order to avoid denied claims. Moreover, all DME items covered are expected to last at least three years and should not be used for non-medical purposes. In other words, Medicare expects equipment to be durable and only used as intended by the patient.
We are avoiding these 3 errors, which helps reducing claim decline.
- Missing a claim deadline
- Missing claim information
- Clearing coding or insurance issues
We are finding that your claims should be simple. This is how you use dependency and security and provide full web services. We’re providing customers with a dashboard and we show you the status over time if you want to check out our DME billing software.
- DME Items Pertained By Original Medicare Hospital Beds
- Pressure Reducing Bed
- Suction Pumps Mattresses Mattress Overlays Traction Equipment
- Blood Sugar Monitors
- Blood Sugar (glucose) Test Strips Nebulizers
- Commode Chairs
- Nebulizer Medications Crutches
Items not covered are
Daily medical items used at home are not typically covered by Medicare. This includes first aid items like band-aids, gauze, and everyday medical care needs that are low in cost and easily available. Such items should be billed to the patient.
What happens when a patient already has a Medicare advantage plan?
In case you don’t have original Medicare available, kindly contact your supplier immediately and ask for “utilization management “. This term applies to the process Medicare uses to make sure the item is necessary, durable, and can be used appropriately as intended. Suppose accepted then restrictions may apply that have to be taken care of and is to be discussed with the patient.
Can a Patient avail oneself any Supplier?
Medicare will only cover DME items sold by registered suppliers. They should meet certain guidelines and get approved by Medicare. All the suppliers will have a subscriber number which will be required for the claim submission.
Natural Disaster Exceptions
For patients residing in an area that has been declared a national disaster-impacted area by the government, there are some exceptions allowed to the Medicare restrictions. Temporary aid may be provided to patients who have lost their DME items or whose equipment was destroyed or severely damaged during the disaster. Medicare has limitations on coverage, physician database, physician fees, suppliers, and location, depending on the event and exception allowance regulations.
Natural Disaster Exceptions
To sum up, Medicare can be helpful for patients who are in need of costly durable medical equipment at home as long as they meet the requirements for purchasing or renting the items. For matters of billing, it is advisable to become familiar with the Medicare website, DME guidelines, and claims submission format. If any questions? We are here to help! Our experienced team will assist you with services such as consultations, coding, payment posting, credentialing, audits, or AR and rejection management. Use our contact form online to tell us about your billing concerns and you will have an idea of how affordable and effortless it is to work with AccQdata Billing and Consulting team. We only work with DME billing, so your payments will be timely and accurate, leaving you to spend more time doing things that you love! To know more about our service or doubt you can Call us: +1-866-631-3108