CMS Tests New Approach For Working With States

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will let Louisia Department of Insurance employees enter Medicare consumer complaints directly into the CMS complaint tracking system.

The Louisiana department will be the first to participate in the direct entry pilot pgoram, and 8 more states will join the pilot program in the next 4 weeks, Louisiana department officials report.

The new program will eliminate the need for state insurance regulators who get Medicare Advantage and Medicare drug program complaints to call the toll-free CMS Medicare customer service hotline, officials say.