CMS launches podcast to discuss policies and agency updates
First "CMS: Beyond the Policy" podcast explains physician fee schedule for 2019, in a conversational format.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has launched a new podcast called "CMS: Beyond the Policy," to highlight and explain updates to policies and agency programs.
The first podcast is less than 10-minutes long, in a conversational, audio format. The inaugural CMS: Beyond the Policy episode on February 19 focuses on evaluation and management coding as finalized in the 2019 physician fee schedule last November. The fee schedule includes significant changes as to how doctors and other clinicians document office and outpatient visits billed to Medicare.
IMPACT
The podcast explains that the physician fee schedule changes are part of CMS's "Patients Over Paperwork" initiative to reduce the amount of regulations on physicians to allow them to focus on delivering care to their patients.
They are part of the agency's efforts towards transparency and outreach, CMS Administrator Seema Verma said.
TREND
New episodes of the podcast will be released periodically and will offer a range of subject-matter experts, stakeholders, and Administrator Verma.
The first episode is available for download on iTunes and Google Play.
FOR THE RECORD
"The new "Beyond the Policy" podcast demonstrates our commitment to transparency and outreach by presenting CMS-related policies, updates, and innovations on as many platforms as possible," Verma said. "This program is a direct response to stakeholders' suggestions that a podcast would be a modern, user-friendly way to stay informed about CMS."
Twitter: @SusanJMorse
Email the writer: susan.morse@himssmedia.com
