AAPC Pleased With ICD-10 Implementation Date
The American Academy of Professional Coders (AAPC) scored a victory yesterday when it was announced that ICD-10 implementation would be pushed back from 2011 to 2013.
AAPC took an opposing view to that of the American Health Information Management Association, which advocated for an implementation sooner rather than later. AAPC made efforts to push back the proposed implementation date, and the Final Rule for adoption for ICD-10 does just that.
In a press release, AAPC thanked members for submitting comments on the proposed rule and reasserted its steadfast claim that 2011 is just too soon for ICD-10 implementation. "In the face of opposition from other coding organizations, the AAPC stood firm in its belief that a delay was necessary and in fact would reduce the overall cost of implementation," the press release reads. "The delay of 2 years is a victory for all providers, payers and coders."
AAPC also shunned ideas that coders need to begin training now, citing that 3 to 4 years is too long of a span for coders to retain ICD-10 training. "There are other organizations, coder credentialing and otherwise, that are attempting to get everyone to panic and jump quickly into training," the academy said. "We reiterate that it would be a mistake for any coder to jump into training immediately."
The academy is also devising plans to handle the ICD-10 implementation, and noted that eight regional conferences focused solely on ICD-10 will be held by AAPC in 2013. AAPC will also release an overall plan on handling the implementation, and said that would be out soon.