Judge: CMS Changes Helped Clear Medicare Logjam in N.J.

New Jersey's top workers' compensation judge said Wednesday that a decision by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to cancel its agreements with 24 regional contractors and hire an administrative unit of Chickasaw Nation Industries (CNI) as the sole collections agent helped break the logjam of cases held up for review of conditional Medicare payments.Chief Judge Peter Calderone, who doubles as director of the New Jersey Division of Workers' Compensation, reported Tuesday that pending cases flagged as "MCARE" – those resolved except for Medicare's approval...