HCFA plans national Medicare Y2K testing week

The Health Care Financing Administration, the federal agency in charge of Medicare, today announced that it has designated Nov. 15-20 as National MedicareYear 2000 Testing Week, enabling health care providers to evaluate their billing systems in an end-to-end test with Medicare systems.

Although Medicare systems have been tested for the Year 2000 computer date problem, the week-long test will enable health care providers and their billing agents to trouble-shoot problems in billing systems and Medicare claims submissions. It also will give health care providers time to develop fixes and to modify software and hardware as needed.

"Even if health care providers get a late start in readying their systems, they shouldn't let that stop them from taking any action at all," said HCFA Administrator Nancy-Ann DeParle. "It's important that health care providers make contingency plans to ensure they will be able to run their business after Jan. 1, 2000."

For more information on HCFA's Year 2000 readiness program and specific information on Medicare and Medicaid, go to the agency's World Wide Web site at www.hcfa.gov/y2k.