CMS clarifies rules on Virtual Credit Cards (Hint: you aren't required to accept them).

Does it pain you to pony up the 5% processing fee incurred when running virtual credit card payments from certain insurance providers? You'll be happy to know that health plans are required to use EFT on request.

According to AMA Wire:

“A health plan cannot require a provider to accept virtual credit card payments,” the CMS states. “A provider has the right to request that a health plan use the electronic funds transfer (EFT) transaction. If a provider makes the request, the health plan must comply.”

Additionally, the fees for EFT are limited:

"The new guidance on the CMS FAQ page states that the only fee that may apply to a HIPAA EFT transaction is the small charge (averaging 34 cents per transaction) applied by the provider’s bank."

Source: AMA Wire. "Physicians protected from health plan credit card fees." 2017 Oct 5 (via Univadis).

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