April 2007 | Vol. 25, No. 4

CMS Extends Deadline for Publication of the Phase III Physician Self-Referral Final Rule

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) extended the deadline for publication of the Phase III physician self-referral final rule from March 26, 2007 to March 26, 2008, according to an interim final rule in the March 23 Federal Register (72 Fed. Reg. 13710).

CMS published its Phase II rule on March 26, 2004 (69 Fed. Reg. 16054) and, according to the original timeline, was supposed to respond to comments received on that rule and publish a final rule in three years. However, the agency said in its notice that it is "not able to meet the 3-year timeline for publication because [it] received extensive public comments requesting clarification of and revisions to the physician self-referral regulations."

In addition, "because the physician self-referral rules are jointly enforced by CMS, the Office of Inspector General, and the Department of Justice, substantial interagency coordination has been necessary," the notice said.

The Phase II interim final rule will "remain in effect through March 26, 2008," unless Phase III is published and becomes effective before then.