Pre-Payment Review Results for Hospice Routine Home Care for January to March 2025

Published 04/21/2025

Pre-Payment Review Results for Hospice Routine Home Care (RHC) for Targeted Probe and Educate (TPE) for January through March 2025

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) implemented the TPE process for Hospice RHC. The reviews with edit effectiveness are presented here.

Cumulative Results

Table 1. Cumulative Results.
Number of Providers with Edit Effectiveness Providers Compliant Completed/Removed After Probe Providers Non-Compliant Progressing to Subsequent Probe Providers Non-Compliant/Removed for Other Reason
2 1 1 0
Table 2. Cumulative Results.
Total Number of Claims with Edit Effectiveness Total Number of Claims Denied Overall Claim Denial Rate Total Dollars Reviewed Total Dollars Denied Overall Charge Denial Rate
50 9 18% $196,958.68 $41,162.35 21%

Probe One Findings

Table 3. Probe One Findings.
State Number of Providers with Edit Effectiveness Providers Compliant Completed/Removed After Probe Providers Non-Compliant Progressing to Subsequent Probe Providers Non-Compliant/Removed for Other Reason
Fla. 1 1 0 0
Table 4. Probe One Findings.
State Number of Claims with Edit Effectiveness Number of Claims Denied Claim Denial Rate Total Dollars Reviewed Total Dollars Denied Charge Denial Rate
Fla. 40 4 10% $173,360.90 $20,298.77 12%

Probe Two Findings

Table 5. Probe Two Findings.
State Number of Providers with Edit Effectiveness Providers Compliant Completed/Removed After Probe Providers Non-Compliant Progressing to Subsequent Probe Providers Non-Compliant/Removed for Other Reason
Fla. 1 0 1 0
Table 6. Probe Two Findings.
State Number of Claims with Edit Effectiveness Number of Claims Denied Claim Denial Rate Total Dollars Reviewed Total Dollars Denied Charge Denial Rate
Fla. 10 5 50% $23,597.78 $20,863.58 88%

Risk Category

Risk Categories for Hospice RHC are defined as:

Table 7. Risk Category.
Risk Category Error Rate
Minor 0 – 20%
Major 21 – 100%

Figure 1. Risk Category for Hospice Routine Home Care.

Pie chart showing 50% Minor and 50% Major.

Top Denial Reasons

Table 8. Top Denial Reasons.
Percent of Total Denials Denial Code Denial Description Number of Occurrences
40% 5FF36, 5CF36 Documentation Submitted Does Not Support Prognosis of Six Months or Less 2
20% 5FFIP, 5CFIP Invalid Plan of Care 1
20% 5FFH3, 5CFH3 No Certification for Dates Billed 1
20% 5FNER, 5CNER The Hospice Election Statement Does Not Meet Statutory/Regulatory Requirements 1

Denial Reasons and Prevention Recommendations

5FF36/5CF36 — Documentation Submitted Does Not Support Prognosis of Six Months or Less

Reason for Denial
The claim has been fully or partially denied because the documentation submitted for review did not support prognosis of six months or less. 

How to Avoid This Denial

  • Ensure a legible signature is present on all documentation necessary to support six-month prognosis
  • Submit documentation for review to provide clear evidence the beneficiary has a six-month or fewer prognoses which supports hospice appropriateness at the time the benefit is elected, and continues to be hospice appropriate for the dates of service billed
  • Palmetto GBA has a Local Coverage Determination (LCD) for some non-cancer diagnoses. Submit documentation which supports the coverage criteria outlined in the policy. LCDs may be viewed on the Palmetto GBA website.
  • If documenting weight loss to demonstrate a decline in condition, include how much weight was lost over what period of time, past and current nutritional status, current weight and any related interventions
  • Document any comorbidity, which may further support the terminal condition of the beneficiary and the continuing appropriateness of hospice care

References

5FFIP/5CFIP — Invalid Plan of Care

Reason for Denial
The claim has been fully or partially denied as the documentation submitted for review did not include a valid plan of care (POC) for all or some of the dates billed. For a beneficiary to receive hospice care covered by Medicare, a POC must be established before services are provided. The POC is developed from the initial assessment and comprehensive assessment and services provided must be consistent with the POC.

How to Avoid This Denial

  • The POC must contain certain information to be considered valid. This includes:
    • Scope and frequency of services to meet the beneficiary's/family's needs
    • Beneficiary specific information, such as assessment of the beneficiary's needs, management of discomfort and symptom relief
    • Services that are reasonable and necessary for the palliation and management of the beneficiary's terminal illness and related conditions
  • The hospice interdisciplinary group (in collaboration with the individual's attending physician, if any) must review, revise and document the individualized plan as frequently as the patient's condition requires, but no less frequently than every 15 calendar days. A revised POC must include information from the patient's updated comprehensive assessment and must note the patient's progress toward outcomes and goals specified in the POC.

References

5FFH3/5CFH3 — No Certification for Dates Billed

Reason for Denial
The claim has been fully or partially denied as documentation submitted for review did not include a certification covering all or some of the dates billed.

How to Avoid This Denial

  • The hospice must obtain written certification of terminal illness for each benefit period
  • All dates billed must be covered by a certification to be payable under the Medicare hospice benefit
  • If more than one certification covers the dates of service in question, submit all the related certifications for review

References

5FNER/5CNER — The Hospice Election Statement Does Not Meet Statutory/Regulatory Requirements 

Reason for Denial
The claim has been fully or partially denied as the documentation submitted indicates that the statutory/regulatory requirements for the Hospice Election Statement were not met.

How to Avoid This Denial
A Medicare beneficiary must complete an election statement before the Hospice Medicare Benefit can begin. The election statement must include the following items of information:

  • Identification of the particular hospice that will provide care to the individual
  • The individual’s or representative’s (as applicable) acknowledgment that the individual has been given a full understanding of hospice care, particularly the palliative rather than curative nature of treatment
  • The individual’s or representative’s (as applicable) acknowledgment that the individual understands that certain Medicare services are waived by the election
  • The effective date of the election, which may be the first day of hospice care or a later date, but may be no earlier than the date of the election statement. An individual may not designate an effective date that is retroactive
  • The individual’s designated attending physician (if any). Information identifying the attending physician recorded on the election statement should provide enough detail so that it is clear which physician or Nurse Practitioner (NP) was designated as the attending physician. This information should include, but is not limited to, the attending physician’s full name, office address, National Provider Identifier (NPI) number, or any other detailed information to clearly identify the attending physician.
  • The individual’s acknowledgment that the designated attending physician was the individual’s or representative’s choice
  • For hospice elections beginning on or after October 1, 2020, the hospice must provide:
    • Information on individual cost-sharing for hospice services
    • Notification of the individual’s (or representative’s) right to receive an election statement addendum if there are conditions, items, services, and drugs the hospice has determined to be unrelated to the individual’s terminal illness and related conditions and would not be covered by the hospice
    • Information on the Beneficiary and Family Centered Care Quality Improvement Organization (BFCC-QIO), including the right to immediate advocacy and BFCC-QIO contact information
  • The signature of the individual or representative

References

Education
Palmetto GBA offers providers selected for TPE an individualized education session to discuss each claim denial. This is an opportunity to learn how to identify and correct claim errors. A variety of education methods are offered such as webinar sessions, web-based presentations or teleconferences. Other education methods may also be available. Providers do not have to be selected for TPE to request education. If education is desired, please complete the Education Request Form (PDF). 

Next Steps
Providers found to be non-compliant (major risk category/denial rate of 21–100 percent) at the completion of TPE Probe 1 will advance to Probe 2, and providers found to be non-compliant (major risk category/denial rate of 21–100 percent) at the completion of TPE Probe 2 will advance to Probe 3 of TPE after at least 45 days from completing the 1:1 post-probe education call date.


Was this article helpful?