----- Original Message ----- From: "SNF_LTCODF-L SNF_LTCODF-L" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Friday, February 13, 2004 5:45 PM Subject: Form CMS-10055 Skilled Nursing Facility Advance Beneficiary Notice (SNFABN)
> Internet-Only Manual: Pub. 100-4, Medicare Claims Processing Manual, > Chapter 30, Financial Liability Protections, was published online and > effective on October 1, 2003. It is available at > http://www.cms.hhs.gov/manuals/104_claims/clm104c30.pdf. This chapter > includes Section 70, "Form CMS-10055 Skilled Nursing Facility Advance > Beneficiary Notice (SNFABN)." The SNFABN is intended to replace the > five previous SNF notices of noncoverage (NONCs) that were published in > Pub. 12, Skilled Nursing Facility Manual, at section 358. > > Implementation: The new model SNFABN form was available for use as of > October 1, 2003. This form is available online at CMS's Beneficiary > Notices Initiative webpage at: http://www.cms.hhs.gov/medicare/bni/ > Although we strongly encourage use of the new form, it is not yet > mandatory and we recognize that SNFs may need several months to switch > over to the use of the new form. Until the form has been finalized > through the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) public comment and clearance > process and becomes a mandatory use form, intermediaries will not > require use of the new ABN for liability transfer purposes. Interested > parties will have an opportunity to participate in a public meeting on > the SNFABN at CMS on March 16, 2004 and to submit comments during the > PRA process comment periods. The details of this public meeting will be > published in an upcoming Federal Register notice, expected during the > final week of February 2004. We anticipate that the SNFABN will become a > mandatory form around October 1, 2004. We will provide written > clarification via the CMS' SNF list-serve and through the fiscal > intermediaries when the new SNFABN becomes a mandatory, standardized > form. > > Practical Effect: While the SNFABN is still a model form for the time > being, SNFs that wish to afford beneficiaries the best notice possible, > and to best ensure that they are not made liable on the basis of > ineffective notice, are advised to use the model SNFABN (in conjunction > with the advance beneficiary notice policies enunciated in Chapter 30, > especially in Sections 40.3 & 70). The model SNFABN has precisely the > same weight now that the NONCs in Exhibits 1-5 of Pub. 12 Sec. 358 had > previously: SNFABNs are the agency's current best advice as to proper > notice. We believe the new form should greatly simplify SNF notice > procedures by eliminating the inherent confusion associated with the use > of the five different notices, depending on the situation. The earlier > NONCs are no longer included in agency instructions, and their use > should be phased out as soon as possible. > > The Beneficiary Notices Initiative (BNI): The use of beneficiary > notices is one of CMS's best opportunities to achieve successful > outreach to program beneficiaries. CMS directly touches the lives of > millions of beneficiaries every day by its program notices to > beneficiaries. The purpose of the BNI is to wed consumer rights and > protections with effective beneficiary communication, so that > beneficiaries are given the opportunity to timely exercise their rights > and protections in a well-informed manner. The new SNFABN is the latest > product of these efforts. /---------------------------------------------------------- The Case Mix Discussion Group is a free service of the American Association of Nurse Assessment Coordinators "Committed to the Assessment Professional" Be sure to visit the AANAC website. Accurate answers to your questions posted to NAC News and FAQs. For more info visit us at http://www.aanac.org -----------------------------------------------------------/
