HME Accreditation
To become accredited means that you have applied, implemented and adhered to a set of business practices that focus on quality and quality of care. If you intend to submit claims to Medicare for Part B DME items, it means that you have gone through the process to adhere to the set of Quality Standards that Medicare has imposed.
Why is accreditation necessary?
It is a mandate from Medicare that all suppliers of Part B DMEPOS items, equipment and/or supplies become accredited in order to receive reimbursement for the items.
Chiropractors are eligible to enroll as DMEPOS suppliers but are not afforded any special enrollment exemptions extended to other physicians and non-physician practitioners identified inSection 1861(r) of the Social Security Act.
Medicare coverage for a chiropractor is limited to the manual manipulation of the spine to correct a subluxation; all other services furnished or ordered by chiropractors are not covered.
How will accreditation benefit my practice?
It can benefit in many ways; communication, implementation, and management of information, not to mention standardizing ways in which processes and procedures are maintained in your organization. The standards will offer a guide in which you can expand and grow the way you manage improvements.
Streamline HME Accreditation Compliance Maintenance
When you become accredited, you agree to maintain the accreditation standards for all three years, not just a few months prior to the triennial survey.
Not doing so can be costly for many reasons. Managing accreditation compliance can be difficult if you’re not prepared.
Here’s the strategy that you have found works best to simplify HME accreditation compliance: Spread continued compliance into small, “bite-sized” components.
Dividing your tasks into small, manageable tasks and planning them out empowers you to accomplish everything that needs to be done while eliminating the stress of doing it last-minute.
This bite-sized approach allows you to:
- Schedule tasks into a manageable schedule at a pace that YOU can easily control
- Space tasks far enough apart that you have time for primary daily responsibilities
- Eliminate worrying about forgetting something important
- Reduce the feeling that you’re constantly “putting out fires”
In today’s HME environment, you should use every edge you can to be more productive and efficient. Look for an easy-to-use scheduling program like Microsoft Outlook, Google Calendar, iCal or Base Camp.
Use it to help stay compliant with accreditation standards. Just find the program that works best for you and gets started!
Creating a schedule will keep you on track with requirements, minimize deficiencies at re-survey and give you an edge in the industry.