CMS Waives Certain Medicare Requirements Ahead of Florence

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is waiving some Medicare and other insurance requirements, opening healthcare coverage special enrollment opportunities and taking steps to ensure dialysis patients aren't deprived of services as Hurricane Florence threatens the Eastern seaboard, reports Healthcare Finance News . "We are coordinating with federal and local officials to make sure that our beneficiaries, many of whom are some of America's most vulnerable citizens, have access to the healthcare they need," said CMS Administrator Seema Verma. As part of the effort, CMS has issued a number of blanket waivers and other provider-specific requests for specific types of hospitals and other facilities in North Carolina and South Carolina. The agency has also opened special enrollment periods for all Medicare beneficiaries and certain individuals seeking health plans offered through the federal health insurance exchange. CMS is enabling continued access to dialysis services through the Kidney Community Emergency Response program, which has been activated and is working with the End Stage Renal Disease Network of the South Atlantic to assess dialysis facilities in the potentially impacted areas with regard to such things as generators, alternate water supplies, education and materials for patients. Additionally, Medicare beneficiaries who lose or sustain damage to their durable medical equipment such as prosthetics, orthotics, and supplies as a result of the hurricane will see the agency waive certain requirements to ensure beneficiaries regain the medical equipment and supplies they need.