Special Processing Guidelines for Independent CLIA Labs, Ambulatory Surgical Centers and Portable X-ray Suppliers
Labs that are “integrated” into an existing provider or supplier do not require a separate Form CMS-855B enrollment. “Integrated” labs typically are those that have exactly the same ownership and physical location as another enrolled supplier or provider. (Common examples include: (1) hospital labs and (2) a lab at a physician's office.) If a lab is considered “integrated,” the parent provider shall identify the lab as a practice location in section 4 of its Form CMS-855.
If the lab is not “integrated,” the lab must enroll as an independent CLIA lab via the Form CMS-855B application. The contractor shall advise the lab that it must contact the applicable CLIA office; the lab cannot be enrolled until it receives a CLIA number. The contractor shall also ensure that the lab is CLIA-certified and, as applicable, State licensed. Labs that do not plan to participate in the Medicare program must be directed to the applicable CLIA office. For more information on the enrollment of CLIA labs, refer to section 15.4.2.2 of this chapter.
Ambulatory Surgical Centers (ASCs) and Portable X-ray
Suppliers (PXRS) - Initial Enrollment
Unlike other supplier types that enroll via the Form CMS-855B, ASCs and PXRSs must receive a State survey and RO approval before they can enroll in Medicare. Accordingly, once it finishes reviewing the supplier’s application, the contractor may only make a recommendation for approval to the State. The contractor shall not enroll the supplier until it receives a tie-in notice or approval letter from the RO and – in the case of PXRSs - a follow-up site visit is performed per section 15.4.2.5 of this chapter.
When enrolling the ASC or PXRS, the contractor shall use the effective date that is indicated on the tie-in notice/approval letter. This is the date from which the supplier can bill for services. See section 15.7.8.4 of this chapter for more information on ASC/PXRS tie-in notices/approval letters.
Ambulatory Surgical Centers (ASCs)/Portable X-ray
Suppliers (PXRS) Changes of Ownership (CHOWs)
As discussed in sections 15.4.2.1 and 15.4.2.5 of this chapter, an ASC must sign a supplier agreement with Medicare prior to enrollment. PXRSs have no such requirement. However, the contractor shall – unless CMS instructs otherwise – process Form CMS-855B ASC CHOW applications in the same manner as PXRS CHOW applications.
Examining Whether a CHOW May Have Occurred
A. Review of Sales Agreement
If the “Change of Ownership” box in section 1B of the Form CMS-855B is checked, the contractor shall ensure that the entire application is completed and that the supplier submits a copy of the sales agreement. The contractor shall review the sales agreement to determine whether:
1. The ownership change qualifies as a CHOW under the principles of 42 CFR §489.18 and Pub. 100-07, chapter 3, section 3210.1D;
2. Its terms indicate that the new owner will be accepting assignment of the Medicare assets and liabilities of the old owner;
3. The information contained in the agreement is consistent with that reported on the new owner's Form CMS-855B (e.g., same names)
If the sales agreement is unclear as to issues 1 and 2 above, the contractor shall request clarifying information from the supplier. (NOTE: Some sales agreements may fail to specifically refer to Medicare supplier agreements, assets, and/or liabilities, therefore requiring a close review of the sales agreement in its totality.) The information shall be in the form of additional legal documentation or a letter. If the clarification – for whatever reason - requires an update to the supplier’s Form CMS-855B application, the contractor shall request the submission of said update. In addition, if the contractor discovers discrepancies between the data in the sales agreement and that on the Form CMS-855B (issue 3 above), the contractor shall seek clarifying information and, if necessary, obtain an updated Form CMS-855B.
In reviewing the application and the sales agreement, the contractor shall keep in mind the following:
• There may be instances where the parties in a CHOW did not sign a “sales agreement” in the conventional sense of the term; the parties, for example, may have documented their agreement in a “bill of sale.” The contractor may accept this alternative documentation in lieu of a sales agreement so long as the document furnishes clear verification of the terms of the transaction.
• While a CHOW is usually accompanied by a TIN change, this is not always the case; there may be a few instances where the TIN remains the same. Conversely, there may be cases where a supplier is changing its TIN but not its ownership. So while a change of TIN (or lack thereof) is evidence that a CHOW has or has not occurred, it is not the most important factor; rather, the change in the provider’s ownership structure is.
• Form CMS-855B CHOW applications may be accepted by the contractor up to 90 calendar days prior to the anticipated date of the proposed ownership change. Any application received more than 3 months in advance of the projected sale date shall be returned under section 15.8.1 of this chapter.
• On occasion, an ASC or PXRS may submit a Form CMS-855B change of information to report a large-scale stock transfer or other significant ownership change that the supplier does not believe qualifies as a CHOW. If the contractor has any reason to suspect that the transaction in question may indeed be a CHOW, it shall request clarifying information (e.g., copy of the stock transfer agreement).
If – after performing the necessary research – the contractor remains unsure as to whether a CHOW has occurred and/or whether the new owner is accepting assignment, the contractor may refer the matter to the RO for guidance. Such referrals to the RO should only be made if the contractor is truly uncertain as to whether a CHOW and/or acceptance of assignment has taken place and should not be made as a matter of course. A RO CHOW determination is usually not required prior to the contractor making its recommendation.
B. Processing Steps
After performing the steps identified in subsection (A) above, the contractor shall abide by the following:
1. If the contractor believes that a CHOW has occurred but the new owner is not accepting the assets and liabilities of the old owner, the contractor shall treat the ASC/PXRS as a brand new supplier. It shall notify the ASC/PXRS that it must submit: (1) a Form CMS-855B voluntary termination to terminate the “old” facility, and (2) a Form CMS-855B initial enrollment for the “new” facility.
2. If the contractor believes that a CHOW has taken place and that the new owner is accepting the old owner’s assets and liabilities, it shall process the application normally and make a recommendation for approval to the State (with a cc: to the RO) or, if applicable, issue a denial. If the valid CHOW/acceptance of assignment was accompanied by a change in TIN, the transaction must be treated as a CHOW notwithstanding the general rule that a TIN change constitutes an initial enrollment. In other words, the reporting rules regarding CHOWs/assignments in this particular situation take precedence over the “change of TIN” principle.
3. If the contractor believes that a CHOW has not occurred and that the transaction merely represents an ownership change (e.g., minor stock transfer) that does not qualify as a 42 CFR §489.18-type CHOW, the transaction must be reported as a change of information. The only exception to this is if the change of information was accompanied by a change of TIN, in which case the supplier must enroll as a new entity.
NOTE: It is not uncommon for a supplier to undergo a financial or administrative change that it considers to be a CHOW but in actuality does not meet the regulatory definition identified in §489.18.
In scenario 2 above, the contractor shall not forward a copy of the CHOW application to the State agency until it has received and reviewed the final sales agreement. (In some cases, the supplier may submit an interim sales agreement with its application; this is acceptable, so long as it submits the final agreement in accordance with these instructions.) If the final sales agreement is not submitted within 90 days after the contractor’s receipt of the new owner’s application, the contractor shall reject the application. Though the contractor must wait until the 90th day to reject the application, the contractor may do so regardless of how many times it contacted the new owner or what type of responses (short of the actual receipt of the sales agreement) were obtained.
C. Entry into the Provider Enrollment, Chain and Ownership System (PECOS) If it appears that the new owner will be accepting assignment as well as the assets and liabilities of the old owner, the contractor shall enter the changed data into the old owner’s enrollment record in PECOS and, if applicable, switch the record to an “Approval Pending Regional Office Review” status. A new enrollment record shall not be created. If the RO approves the CHOW and sends the tie-in/approval notice to the contractor, the supplier’s CMS Certification Number (CCN) will be maintained and the information in the existing record will be updated to reflect the new owner’s information once the record is switched to an approved status. If it appears that the new owner will not be accepting assignment as well as the assets and liabilities of the old owner, a new enrollment record shall be created containing the new owner’s information.
D. CHOWs and Address Changes
A new owner may propose to relocate the supplier concurrent with a CHOW. If the relocation is to a site in a different geographic area serving different clients than previously served and employing different personnel to serve those clients, the contractor shall notify the RO immediately. Unless the RO dictates otherwise, the supplier shall - per Pub. 100-07, chapter 3, section 3210.1(B)(5) - treat the transaction as an initial enrollment (and the supplier as a new applicant), rather than as an address change of the existing supplier.
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