The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) this weekend announced they would accelerate payments to Part A providers and advance payments to Part B suppliers that experience claims disruptions due to the cyberattack at Change Healthcare that has crippled its systems for more than two weeks.
CMS made the announcement in a fact sheet on Saturday in the wake of criticism from the American Hospital Association that the actions the agency took in the previous week didn’t go far enough to address the significant cash flow problems that impacted operations, preventing facilities from submitting claims and receiving Medicare claims payments when using the Change Healthcare platform.
CMS said it will now make accelerated payments to Part A providers and advance payments to Part B suppliers that experience claims disruptions due to the ransomware attack on Change Healthcare that began February 21.
The agency will advance up to 30 days of payments, which are based on the total claims paid to the provider/supplier between August 1, 2023, and October 31, 2023, divided by three. Providers are expected to repay the money 90 days after receiving the payment. Interest will begin accruing 30 days later.
“CMS also recognizes that many Medicaid providers are deeply affected by the impact of the cyberattack,” the agency said in a news release. “We are continuing to work closely with States and are urging Medicaid managed care plans to make prospective payments to impacted providers, as well.”
In a special bulletin, the American Hospital Association said it welcomed the announcement and appreciates CMS’ efforts to try to find solutions to the disruption and alleviate the impact on hospitals, health systems, physicians, and other providers.
Meanwhile, Change Healthcare said it is working aggressively to restore systems and services. The health care technology company expects its payment platform will be restored as of March 15 and its claims network and software will be up and running the week of March 18.