Survey: Physician Practices Are Behind Schedule on ICD-10 Readiness, Yet Remain Optimistic

Physician practices are generally still behind schedule in terms of preparation for ICD-10, yet they still have a general sense of optimism about their readiness, according to a recent survey conducted by the Duluth, Ga.-based medical claims clearinghouse Navicure.

Although 74 percent of those surveyed have still not started implementing their ICD-10 transition plan, most are confident they will be prepared by the deadline. In fact, the overwhelming majority (87 percent) of practices considered themselves “very confident,” “confident” or “somewhat confident” they would be prepared by October 1, 2014.

A variety of personnel was represented in the survey respondent group, which was a follow-up to a survey conducted by the organizations in April 2013, including practice administrators, billing managers, practice executives and billers.

Additionally, most respondents do not anticipate any disruptions from their electronic health record (EHR), practice management system or clearinghouse vendors, yet many have claimed they have not received adequate communication from their vendors thus far.

The survey found a low concern of impact to budgets or productivity among respondents. While almost two-thirds of survey respondents anticipate cash flow being interrupted, far fewer anticipate a similar impact to staff productivity.

Among those practices that have not yet begun preparing for ICD-10, 86 percent anticipate starting by May 2014. In addition, 27 percent are unsure of how or where to start preparing for the transition, while 22 percent claim they do not have the time, staff or resources available to begin preparing.

Respondents see training as being the most challenging (43 percent) area of the ICD-10 transition, followed by payers’ lack of preparedness, resulting in delayed payment (35 percent).

A survey published in December by the Workgroup for Electronic Data Interchange (WEDI) revealed that despite the impending deadline, the healthcare industry isn’t ready. According to that survey, 80 percent of providers will not complete their business changes and begin testing before 2014.