An Oct. 1 start date “seems pretty close, with all the information and training pending release,” said Alicia Cantinieri, vice president of MDS policy and education for Zimmet Healthcare Services Group, in an email to McKnight’s Tuesday.
Calling the most recent MDS draft issuance “a December gift,” Cantinieri, reminded that CMS said it would release final versions of the new MDS item sets in “early 2023.” The agency also said last month that it hoped to release the corresponding new RAI manual during the second-quarter of 2023.
“This feels like receiving the gift of a new bike as a child, except that it isn’t assembled, and the instructions will be shipped separately in six months,” Cantinieri said.
She said she also would not be surprised to see more changes coming.