The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has reported that Medicare healthcare providers continue to be satisfied with services provided by Medicare fee-for-service contractors, showing a relatively smooth transition to the new Medicare Administrative Contractors.
The average score based on a satisfaction survey across all contractors was 4.51 on a scale of 1 to 6. This year's average score was comparable to last year's average score of 4.56.
According to officials, the Medicare Contractor Provider Satisfaction Survey, conducted by CMS for the third year, is designed to gather and report objective, quantifiable data on provider satisfaction with the fee-for-service contractors who process and pay Medicare claims.
"CMS strives to provide the highest quality of service in all areas and demands the same from its contractors," CMS Acting Administrator Kerry Weems said. "These surveys support our efforts to provide quality service by conveying feedback from providers to our contractors so that they make efforts to improve processes and enhance service to providers."
"The results from previous surveys have enabled CMS to establish performance standards for contractors and we look forward to incorporating the results into contractor incentive plans," he said.
The top indicator of satisfaction among providers in 2008 was how Medicare contractors handled provider inquiries, according to reports. This is the third consecutive year this function was cited as one of the key indicators of provider satisfaction.
Claims processing also remained high on the list for provider satisfaction, data indicated. The parts of the claims function particularly associated with provider satisfaction included claims editing and ease of submitting electronic claims.
The 2008 survey queried about 35,000 randomly selected providers - the physicians, healthcare practitioners and facilities, such as hospitals and skilled nursing home facilities that serve Medicare beneficiaries.
Survey questions focused on seven business functions of the provider-contractor relationship: provider outreach and education, provider inquiries, claims processing, appeals, provider enrollment, medical review, and provider audit and reimbursement. Respondents were asked to rate their contractors using a scale of 1 to 6 on each of the business functions, with "1" representing "not at all satisfied" and "6" representing "completely satisfied." Contractors received an overall composite score as well as a score on each business function. The contractors will receive an individual summary of their results.
The survey is mandated by the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003 and allows CMS to to make valid comparisons of provider satisfaction between contractors and, over time, improvements to Medicare.
The public reporting of the results over the last three years has increased awareness about the survey and resulted in contractor accountability to the provider community, Weems said.