On the same day that a proposed delay for ICD-10 compliance officially hit the books, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) reiterated Tuesday they are committed to eventually implementing ICD-10. Giving a “State of the Union” on ICD-10 at Tuesday’s ICD-10 Summit in Baltimore, CMS acting deputy director of the Office of E-Health Standards and Services, Denise Buenning, MsM, explained why a delay and official implementation of the code set is essential for the healthcare industry.

Crystal balls and tea leaf readings are not the only ways to foresee the impact ICD-10 will have on a hospital’s bottom line. Advanced analytics can be used to understand how payments will change when using ICD-10 codes.

The proposed ICD-10 delay and how it impacts industry preparation plans was one of several hot topics permeating two days of sessions, April 16-17, at AHIMA’s 2012 ICD-10 Summit in Baltimore. This concern was reiterated Tuesday during the final session of the Summit, “Reflections of the 2012 ICD-10 Summit Reactor Panel,” where presenters and subject matter expert attendees recapped their main takeaways from the event.

They have the same goal—convert to ICD-10. But the way to achieve that goal is different for providers, payers, and vendors. Still, while each have their unique concerns regarding the implementation, they all must find a way to work together if any plan is to succeed.

Several federal programs that promote the use of health IT to improve healthcare outcomes are successfully on track, including the meaningful use EHR incentive program, according to Doug Fridsma, MD, PhD, director of the office of standards and interoperability at the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (ONC).

The possible one-year delay of ICD-10 compliance will also push back scheduled ICD-10 coding updates while maintaining the partial ICD-9 coding freeze currently in place.

At Monday’s ICD-10 Summit session discussing the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) ICD-10 preparation plans, CMS’ senior technical advisor Pat Brooks, RHIA, said that adding more codes to ICD-9 or ICD-10 would only complicate current coding efforts.

The transition to ICD-10-CM/PCS has been described as healthcare’s Y2K due to the depth and breadth of the impact this HIPAA standard will have on almost every component of the healthcare industry—from coding diagnoses to new software deployment to payment changes.

While most industry stakeholders understand the scale of the change, it can be hard to understand and appreciate how all the ICD-10 elements are linked together.

ICD-10 is not just a coding problem. A recent report indicated that out of all competing hospital initiatives ICD-10 carries the largest risk to hospitals’ financial health.

Given the differences and complexities between ICD-9 and ICD-10 diagnosis and procedure codes, hospitals will inevitably see changes in hospital reimbursement amounts by diagnosis-related group or service line.

ICD-10 will impact all sectors of the healthcare industry from providers to payers to vendors. HIM professionals can have a role in helping each of these groups navigate the challenges and opportunities represented in the transition to the ICD-10-CM/PCS coding systems.

Providers are in the midst of an unprecedented period of change as they deal with national healthcare initiatives implementing changes to payment systems and quality reporting, launching accountable care organizations (ACOs), and calling for the “meaningful use” of EHRs.