CMS Issues Guidance on Applying for Accelerated Payments

April 10, 2020

As announced on April 9th in a CMS News Alert, in order to increase cash flow to health care providers impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) expanded its Accelerated and Advance Payment Program to a broader group of providers. CMS has published a fact sheet with guidance on the accelerated/advance payment process and how to submit a request. The approval process has been streamlined to four to six days (compared to the previous timeframe of three to four weeks) and CMS has approved over 21,000 requests for nearly $51 billion in advance and accelerated payments over the past week.