The new physician fee schedule released Friday by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services will pay physicians for counseling Medicare beneficiaries on end-of-life care planning.

This policy change is welcome news to physicians and health groups who have long sought to provide this advance care planning to patients. The policy was derailed in the past by uproar that the change would allow for “death panels” to control healthcare costs.

The rule takes effect Jan. 1, 2016, and is entirely voluntary. Consistent with recommendations from the American Medical Association, CMS is establishing separate payment and a payment rate for two advance care planning services provided to Medicare beneficiaries by physicians and other practitioners. The Medicare statute currently provides coverage for advance care planning under the “Welcome to Medicare” visit available to all Medicare beneficiaries, but they may not need these services when they first enroll. Establishing separate payment for advance care planning codes to recognize additional practitioner time to conduct these conversations provides beneficiaries and practitioners greater opportunity and flexibility to utilize these planning sessions at the most appropriate time for patients and their families, according to CMS. CMS is also finalizing payment for advance care planning when it is included as an optional element of the "Annual Wellness Visit. "

Resources on advance care planning and Practitioner’s Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment (POLST) can be found on NJHA’s Web page. 

The fee schedule also includes provisions on physician quality reporting, the physician value-based payment modifier and other issues. Click here for a fact sheet with added details.