HCPCS Modifier CS

HCPCS Modifier CS
Cost-Sharing is Waived (COVID-19)

Previously, CMS made available the CS HCPCS modifier for the Gulf of Mexico oil spill in 2010. Recently, however, CMS repurposed the CS HCPCS modifier for COVID-19 purposes. Now, for services furnished on March 18, 2020, and through the end of the Public Health Emergency, outpatient providers, physicians, and other providers and suppliers that bill Medicare for Part B services under specific payment systems should use the CS HCPCS modifier on applicable claim lines to identify the service as subject to the cost-sharing wavier for COVID-19 testing-related services and to get 100 percent of the Medicare-approved amount. Additionally, providers should not charge Medicare patients any co-insurance and/or deductible amounts for those services.

Guidelines
During the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency, CMS has provided specific guidelines for the use of HCPCS Modifier CS in the following CMS publications:

• Families First Coronavirus Response Act Waives Coinsurance and Deductibles for Additional COVID-19 Related Services (April 7, 2020)
• Using CS Modifier When Cost-Sharing is Waived (April 10, 2020)