CMS1201238

Medicare Program: Proposed Changes to the Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System and CY 2008 Payment Rates; Proposed Changes to the Ambulatory Surgical Center Payment System and CY 2008 Payment Rates

Medicare and Medicaid Programs: Proposed Changes to Hospital Conditions of Participation; Proposed Changes Affecting Necessary Provider Designations of Critical Access Hospitals, published in the Federal Register August 2, 2007; CMS-1392-P

This proposed rule, in part, would revise the Medicare hospital outpatient prospective payment system to implement applicable statutory requirements and changes arising from our continuing experience with this system. In this proposed rule, we describe the proposed changes to the amounts and factors used to determine the payment rates for Medicare hospital outpatient services paid under the prospective payment system. These changes would be applicable to services furnished on or after January 1, 2008.

Additionally, this proposed rule, in part, would update the revised Medicare ambulatory surgical center (ASC) payment system to implement certain related provisions of the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003 (MMA). In this proposed rule, we propose the applicable relative payment weights and amounts for services furnished in ASCs, specific HCPCS codes to which the final policies of the ASC payment system would apply, and other pertinent ratesetting information for the CY 2008 ASC payment system. These changes would be applicable to services furnished on or after January 1, 2008.