they understand what services are covered or not covered, and
that they will adhere to proper billing procedures.
Opting Out
The American Dental Association (ADA) notes that opting out
of Medicare coverage does not mean that a provider’s patients
will not receive coverage for prescription medications prescribed by the dentist. It only indicates that the few dental services typically covered by Medicare will not be reimbursed by the
program. Once a dentist has opted out of Medicare, the provider
may not submit a new application to opt in or opt out for two
years.
Medicare Ordering and Referring Providers
Some dental clinics do not wish to enroll as Medicare providers,
but they still interact with Medicare patients on a regular basis.
These clinics may choose to enroll as Medicare Ordering and
Referring Providers. In this program, providers do not directly
receive reimbursement from Medicare for services provided.
However, with online enrollment, the provider is added to the
Medicare Ordering and Referring Registry as a clinic that may
order testing or refer patients to clinics and specialists that are
approved Medicare providers.
Ultimately, the decision to opt in or opt out of the Medicare sys-
tem is one that should be made with care and consideration,
and in a timely fashion. Those who do not opt in or opt out by
the June 1st deadline will find that Medicare will stop providing
coverage for services and prescriptions on December 1, 2015.
The onus is on dentists to decide and put a plan into action.
Angie Walters began her career in public accounting
in 1992 and is currently a partner at Goldin Peiser &
Peiser, LLP. She is responsible for providing accounting, consulting and business advisory services to the
firm’s clients, as well as leading GPP’s CFO Advisory
Services practice within the Accounting Services
group. The majority of her focus is on new business
development strategy within the firm’s key niche industries – manufacturing
and healthcare. Angie joined the firm with more than 25 years of experience
working in financial advisory roles in corporate finance and operations, as
well as leadership roles in public accounting firms in the greater Dallas area.
To learn more about Angie you can visit her bio or Google+ page.
If you have any questions, contact Angie Walters at:
[email protected] or (214) 635-2547.
Note: This content is accurate as of the date published above and is subject to change.
Please seek professional advice before acting on any matter contained in this article.
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