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Ophthalmologists in the Pittsburgh area. 


IMPORTANT  INFORMATION and RESOURCES

Members Affected by Change HealthCare Ransomware Shutdown

The POS will continually update this site as information and resources become available. 

Novitas Advance Payments for Providers

Novitas is allowing individual practices/providers to request up to 80% of historic Medicare payments from the previous 6 months.

Instructions for submitting a request for an Advance Payment via FAX or snail mail are available on the Novitas website at

Medicare Overpayments:Advance Payment – Part B Only (novitas solutions.com)

In case the link doesn’t work for you cut and paste this url:

https://www.novitas-solutions.com/webcenter/portal/MedicareJL/pagebyid?contentId=00163529

Novitas also suggests you may reach out to their EDI department for other questions about Change Healthcare at 1-855-252-8782, option 3.

We have at least one practice that has successfully submitted using this process. 




ARTICLE | THE NEW YORK TIMES 

With Cyberattack Fix Weeks Away, Health Providers Slam United

Includes an overview and a few ideas of when things may be fixed from the attack.

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/08/health/united-healthcare-cyberattack.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare

CENTERS FOR MEDICARE (CMS) and MEDICAID SERVICES | RESOURCES

On Saturday, March 9, Centers for Medicare (CMS) and Medicaid Services announced a new opportunity for physicians impacted by the cyberattack and resulting disruptions with Change Healthcare to request advanced Medicare payments to help with cash flow disruptions.

  The details of the program, terms, and the steps needed to apply can be found in the links below.

Fact Sheet – https://www.cms.gov/newsroom/fact-sheets/change-healthcare/optum-payment-disruption-chopd-accelerated-payments-part-providers-and-advance

CMS Statement – https://www.cms.gov/newsroom/press-releases/cms-statement-continued-action-respond-cyberattack-change-healthcare

ALLEGHENY COUNTY MEDICAL SOCIETY | BLOG POST (Updated as information becomes available) 

https://www.acms.org/resources-following-change-healthcare-cyberattack/


Highmark Advanced Payment online form! (3.14.2024)

https://forms.office.com/pages/responsepage.aspx?id=cxp9xVwOS0avtwhtxn89Rg__BuBvSWNIgWhDSBtUAY1URU8zM1BWMFNWMTNPT0c0RE0wV1JPQlRIQiQlQCN0PWcu

To complete the form, you will need the # of days you have cash on hand, the weekly Highmark payment amount from all Highmark entities, # of weeks you are requesting. At the end of the form, it says to allow 10 days for processing.

There is a special CMS form to now complete for advanced payment. 

Please read our article (JHJL) and complete the Request for Healthcare/Optum Payment Disruption (CHOPD) Accelerated Payments to Part A Providers and Advance Payments to Part B Suppliers template to submit your request. Please note:

·  The template must be initialed and signed by the provider's authorized official that is legally able to make financial commitments and assume financial obligations on behalf of the provider (digital signature is acceptable).

·  Providers that are part of a health system may attach a list of Medicare IDs (PTANs) / NPIs with the request. The authorized representative must have authority to sign on behalf of all parties/suppliers included in the list.

For additional information such as eligibility requirements, required acknowledgement of terms, and payment amount, please refer to CMS' CHOPD Accelerated Payments to Part A Providers and Advance Payments to Part B Suppliers Fact Sheet.

How to submit your request:

Please submit the completed request template to our Accelerated and Advance Payments mailbox at AAP@novitas-solutions.com.

"Our priority is to support CMS in their efforts to help our Medicare providers experiencing payment disruptions from this cyber incident. We look forward to receiving your request as soon as possible."

UPMC MERCY: THE NEW LOCATION OF URGENT CARE 

UPMC Mercy Pavilion and the Vision Institute have replaced UPMC Presbyterian Emergency Department and the former Eye and Ear Institute as the referral location for urgent and emergent 24/7 ophthalmic care in the Pittsburgh area. 

It is vital that you direct urgent and emergent care patients to

UPMC Mercy rather than to UPMC Presbyterian. 

The change in location is a break in a longstanding Pittsburgh tradition. We would like to ensure that the greater Pittsburgh eye care community adjusts quickly. Please update your practice's answering machine messages and after-hours scripting as these items are easy to overlook.

The leadership team at the Vision Institute is available for any further information. 

If you have questions about urgent care logistics, please contact Jake Waxman (waxmane@upmc.edu) or Jerome Finkelstein (finkelsteinji@upmc.edu). 




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Society Mission

To act as the voice of ophthalmologic medicine in the Pittsburgh area, to serve as patient advocate in promoting preventive eye care, quality medical and surgical care and rehabilitative services for individuals with ophthalmologic diseases and to advance the knowledge, science and practice of ophthalmology, to assist in the improvement of the quality of ophthalmologic medicine and training therein, and to promote integrity in the practice of ophthalmic medicine.



Pittsburgh Ophthalmology Society | 850 Ridge Ave | Pittsburgh, PA 15212
Phone 412-321-5030  | Fax 412-321-5323

Administrator: Nadine Popovich | npopovich@acms.org 

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