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December 6, 2013

"Two- Midnight" Inpatient Hospital Stay: Probe Medical Review

The J15 Part A Medical Review department will perform a provider-specific probe review on inpatient hospital claims for appropriateness of inpatient admission under the revised two-midnight benchmark for dates of admission October 1, 2013 through December 31, 2013. For further information, please refer to the CMS website at http://cms.gov/Research-Statistics-Data-and-Systems/Monitoring-Programs/Medicare-FFS-Compliance-Programs/Medical-Review/InpatientHospitalReviews.htmlExternal Website.

Tips for responding to ADRs

  • If you receive an Additional Documentation Request (ADR) from CGS, submit the requested medical record information within 30 days.
  • Monitor your claim status on Direct Data Entry (DDE). If the claim is in status/location SB6001, the claim has been selected for review and records must be submitted. Please note: CGS may request records through our Medical Review or Claims departments and other contractors such as the Unified Program Integrity Contractor (UPIC) may also request records. Ensure the records are submitted to the appropriate entity.
  • Alert your mail room staff to be aware of any mail you receive from CGS.
  • Be aware of the need to submit medical records within 30 days of the date on the additional Documentation Request (ADR) in the upper left corner.
  • Gather all information needed for the claim and submit it all at one time.
  • Submit medical records as soon as the ADR is received.
  • Attach a copy of the ADR to each individual claim.
  • If responding to multiple ADRs, separate each response and attach a copy of the ADR to each individual set of medical records. Ensure each set of medical records is bound securely so the submitted documentation is not detached or lost.
  • Do not mail packages C.O.D.; we cannot accept them.
  • Return the medical records to the address indicated in the ADR.

What to Send

Before you send the requested records, we suggest you double-check the accuracy of your submitted claim.

Send the following documentation when responding to the ADRs, along with other supporting documentation. Please note: the documentation you submit in response to this request should comply with these requirements.

  • Physician's orders for the admission and all services billed
  • Itemized list of all charges
  • Plan of Care
  • Diagnostic test results/reports, including imaging reports
  • Clinical/therapy notes
  • A signature log or an attestation statement, if you question the legibility of your signature. Medicare requires that medical records entries for services provided/ordered be authenticated by the author. The signature may be hand-written or electronic; stamp signatures are not acceptable. Patient identification, date of service, and provider of the service should be clearly identified on the submitted documentation.
    • If the signature requirements are not met, we will conduct the review without considering the documentation with the missing or illegible signature. This may lead us to determine that the medical necessity for the service billed has not been substantiated.
    • For more information regarding signature requirements for Medicare purposes, refer to the CMS Medicare Program Integrity Manual (Pub. 100-08), chapter 3, section 3.3.2.4External PDF and CMS MLN Matters article MM6698External PDF, "Signature Requirements for Medical Review Purposes."

Options for Submitting Records

  • You may submit medical records compact disks (CDs) or digital video disks (DVDs) to CGS. You must use the correct file format of tagged image file format (tiff), which may be saved to your CD/DVD.
  • You may also submit records via fax to: 803.462.2596. Use the ADR letter as a cover sheet.
  • If you choose to respond by mail, send the requested records to the address indicated in the ADR letter.
  • If you are using a courier/overnight service, please forward the medical records to:

    CGS
    26 Century Blvd STE ST610
    Nashville, TN 37214-3685

If you have questions regarding this review, please contact the medical review department at 803.763.4999.

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