CMS News Briefs

• The January 2010 quarterly Provider Specific Files (PSF) SAS data files are now available on the CMS website at: http://www.cms.hhs.gov/ProspMedicareFeeSvcPmtGen/04_psf_SAS.asp in the
  Downloads section. Note: These are the quarterly data sets for the Provider Specific Data for Public Use in SAS Format.
  
  
• The CY 2010 Home Health PPS (HH PPS) PC Pricer has been added to the CMS website as of January 22, 2010. This is on the web page, http://www.cms.hhs.gov/PCPricer/05_HH.asp, under the Downloads section.
  
  
• CMS has released a Special Edition MLN Matters article that reminds providers and suppliers that CMS has launched the fifth annual national administration of the Medicare Contractor Provider Satisfaction Survey (MCPSS). Providers and suppliers that have received a letter indicating that they were randomly selected to participate in the 2010 MCPSS are urged to take a few minutes to go online and complete this important survey via a secure Internet website. The article, SE1005 Providers Randomly Selected to Participate in the Medicare Contractor Provider Satisfaction Survey (MCPSS) Urged to Respond, is available at http://www.cms.hhs.gov/MLNMattersArticles/downloads/SE1005.pdf.
  
  
• The World of Medicare WBT is designed for health care professionals who want to understand the fundamentals of the Medicare Program. After completing this course, participants should be able to differentiate between Medicare Part A, Part B, Part C, and Part D, identify Medicare beneficiary health insurance options, eligibility, and enrollment, as well as recognizing how Medigap and Medicaid work with the Medicare Program.
  
  This WBT course offers continuing education credits.  Please see the course description for details. This training can be accessed by visiting http://www.cms.hhs.gov/MLNgeninfo/ and scrolling to the
  "Related Links Inside CMS" page section. Within these links, select Web Based Training (WBT) Modules and then "World of Medicare (January 2010)" from the list provided.
  
• The Medicare Learning Network (MLN) has produced two QUICK REFERENCE CHARTS, which provide information on frequently used Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) web pages.
  
  *         The Quick Reference:  All Medicare Providers
  <http://www.cms.hhs.gov/MLNProducts/downloads/Quick_Reference_All_Medicare_Providers.pdf (DEC2009) chart includes a list of CMS web pages that all Medicare providers use most frequently.
  
  *         The Quick Reference:  New Medicare Provider
  < http://www.cms.hhs.gov/MLNProducts/downloads/Quick_Reference_New_Provider.pdf (DEC2009) chart includes a list of CMS web pages that new Medicare providers use most frequently.
  
  These charts can be bookmarked and viewed online or they can be printed and used as ready references. Both charts can be located at http://www.cms.hhs.gov/MLNProducts/MPUB/list.asp on the MLN Publications page.  Use search key word "quick" to locate these publications.