BALTIMORE, MD (Home Care Wire) You need to test your NPI-only claims if you haven’t yet.

“[The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services] is concerned that the percentage of Medicare claims with NPI-only is not growing fast enough,” the agency says in a recent message to providers. Starting May 23, CMS will require NPI-only claims that do not contain legacy numbers such as OSCAR numbers.

CMS has declared May 7 as “legacy free day” and has requested certain clearinghouses to test NPI-only claims on that day, it says. “This exercise will help Medicare providers evaluate their NPI readiness prior to the May 23, 2008 deadline,” the agency expects.

If claims reject or suspend, providers can resolve those problems before the deadline hits and cash flow grinds to a halt.