Ob-Gyn Coding Alert

In a move that brings the nation one step closer to full compliance, 13 more states were approved to offer Medicaid coverage to women who were screened and found to need treatment through the National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program. The program is run under the auspices of the federal Breast and Cervical Cancer Prevention and Treatment Act (BCCPT).
 
As of Oct. 19, 2001, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Florida, Hawaii, Kansas,  Maine, Michigan, Nebraska, Vermont and Wyoming will extend Medicaid coverage for breast- and cervical-cancer treatment to uninsured women.
 
Although the most recent announcement doesn't address retroactive billing or reimbursement, providers should check with their state Medicaid agency regarding coverage after Oct. 19.
 

Who Is Eligible?

It has been reported throughout the year that women under the age of 65 who test positive for cervical or breast cancer and are not now eligible for Medicaid are candidates for the program. Qualified women must also have no other applicable health insurance. The program will pay for the duration of their treatment for breast or cervical cancer under already-established Medicaid guidelines for coverage.
 
The early-detection program, which began in 1990, has offered cervical- and breast-cancer screening to more than 1.7 million women. But according to the Centers for Disease Control, which administers the screening program, that number represents only 15 percent of eligible women. For more information about this program, go to www.hcfa.gov/medicaid/bccpthm.htm and www.cdc.gov/cancer/nbccedp/index.htm.