CFR

418.22—Certification of terminal illness.

(a) Timing of certification— (1) General rule. The hospice must obtain written certification of terminal illness for each of the periods listed in § 418.21, even if a single election continues in effect for an unlimited number of periods, as provided in § 418.24(c).

(2) Basic requirement. Except as provided in paragraph (a)(3) of this section, the hospice must obtain the written certification before it submits a claim for payment.

(3) Exception. If the hospice cannot obtain the written certification within 2 calendar days, after a period begins, it must obtain an oral certification within 2 calendar days and the written certification before it submits a claim for payment.

(b) Content of certification. Certification will be based on the physician's or medical director's clinical judgment regarding the normal course of the individual's illness. The certification must conform to the following requirements:

(1) The certification must specify that the individual's prognosis is for a life expectancy of 6 months or less if the terminal illness runs its normal course.

(2) Clinical information and other documentation that support the medical prognosis must accompany the certification and must be filed in the medical record with the written certification as set forth in paragraph (d)(2) of this section. Initially, the clinical information may be provided verbally, and must be documented in the medical record and included as part of the hospice's eligibility assessment.

(3) The physician must include a brief narrative explanation of the clinical findings that supports a life expectancy of 6 months or less as part of the certification and recertification forms, or as an addendum to the certification and recertification forms.

(i) If the narrative is part of the certification or recertification form, then the narrative must be located immediately prior to the physician's signature.

(ii) If the narrative exists as an addendum to the certification or recertification form, in addition to the physician's signature on the certification or recertification form, the physician must also sign immediately following the narrative in the addendum.

(iii) The narrative shall include a statement under the physician signature attesting that by signing, the physician confirms that he/she composed the narrative based on his/her review of the patient's medical record or, if applicable, his or her examination of the patient.

(iv) The narrative must reflect the patient's individual clinical circumstances and cannot contain check boxes or standard language used for all patients.

(c) Sources of certification. (1) For the initial 90-day period, the hospice must obtain written certification statements (and oral certification statements if required under paragraph (a)(3) of this section) from—

(i) The medical director of the hospice or the physician member of the hospice interdisciplinary group; and

(ii) The individual's attending physician, if the individual has an attending physician. The attending physician must meet the definition of physician specified in § 410.20 of this subchapter.

(2) For subsequent periods, the only requirement is certification by one of the physicians listed in paragraph (c)(1)(i) of this section.

(d) Maintenance of records. Hospice staff must—

(1) Make an appropriate entry in the patient's medical record as soon as they receive an oral certification; and

(2) File written certifications in the medical record.

[55 FR 50834, Dec. 11, 1990, as amended at 57 FR 36017, Aug. 12, 1992; 70 FR 45144, Aug. 4, 2005; 70 FR 70547, Nov. 22, 2005; 74 FR 39413, Aug. 6, 2009]

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