COMPLIANCE CORNER
By MICHAEL HOLOMAN
The Road to Orthotics and Prosthetics Enrollment
E! QU IZ M EARN
2
BUSINESS CE
CREDITS P.34
Follow these steps to ensure a smooth Medicare enrollment process
Editor’s Note: Readers of Compliance Corner are now eligible to earn two CE credits. After reading this column, simply scan the QR code or use the link on page 34 to take the Compliance Corner quiz. Receive a score of at least 80 percent, and AOPA will transmit the information to the certifying boards.
CE
This month’s Compliance Corner was written by Michael Holoman of the National Supplier Clearinghouse.
CREDITS
ACCREDITATION
DMEPOS
T
HE MOMENT FINALLY ARRIVES.
Your pen hovers over the page, or your mouse pointer sits on the “Submit Application” button in the Provider Enrollment and Chain/Ownership System (PECOS), and your heart pounds a little harder. The question we all ask ourselves arrives: “Have I included everything?” The enrollment process for Medicare can be an arduous, stressful process. Did you fill out all of the appropriate sections of the application? Did you include all of the appropriate documentation? Are you exempt from accreditation? Is this the correct application? Wait … there’s a fee? Do any of these questions sound familiar as you go to ink your signature or click the “Submit Application” button? Removing that angst during Medicare enrollment is possible. As an orthotic or prosthetic supplier, it’s possible you may make some common errors throughout the enrollment process—but you can adopt strategies to help reduce errors and ease that angst. Before you begin to traverse the path of durable medical equipment Medicare enrollment, slip off those trail boots for a moment and rest your feet, and we will guide you safely down the application road.
Tools
Before any trail hike, we need to be sure we have all of the necessary tools for the journey to be a success and 32
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to prevent any unnecessary stops. The website of the National Supplier Clearinghouse (NSC) is where you’ll want to begin. Specifically, you’ll want to use the New Supplier Enrollment document, which will explain all of the documentation and steps you should complete before even considering putting anything on the application. First Bump in the Road: The infamous, “Do I have to be accredited?” question always comes up among the O&P community. The answer is simple. You do not have to be accredited—you are exempt. How about, “Do I need to have a surety bond?” This is another question that O&P suppliers often ponder. This answer is not quite as simple. You are exempt if you meet some criteria: • The orthotic or prosthetic personnel are in private practice; • The business is making custommade orthotics and/or prosthetics; • The business is solely owned and operated by the orthotic or prosthetic personnel; and • The business is only billing for orthotics, prosthetics, and supplies. There isn’t any interpretation of the criteria. If you meet all of the criteria, then you are exempt from the surety bond requirement and can put the money you save into something else.