CMS looks to simplify Medicare application process for providers

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is aiming to make it easier for providers to apply for eligibility, the agency announced late last week.

Changes to the provider Medicare enrollment application include reorganizing the form to make the flow of questions more logical, removal of duplicate fields, and adding new specialty codes for providers to choose from, Modern Healthcare reports.

These changes come as providers have criticized the enrollment process as inconsistent, with varying standards applied from one facility to the next, allowing some unqualified clinicians to enroll in the federal program. In recent years CMS has come under criticism for allowing some ineligible providers to slip into the program.

This new process will create a single document for application, experts said, speeding up the ability to process new providers.