Medical Billing and Health Care Financing Administration

On July 20th, 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Social Security Act. Therefore establishing Medicare and Medicaid. At that time the Social Security Administration became responsible for the administration of Medicare and the Social and Rehabilitation Service became responsible for the administration of Medicaid. Today, the Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA) provides health insurance for over 74 million Americans through Medicare, Medicaid, and Child Health. The majority of these individuals receive benefits through Fee-for-Service system. There is an increasing number who are choosing managed care plans. It has taken Presidents and Vice Presidents commitment to reinventing government and government regulations seriously to reach a new HCFA customer focus. The HCFA has reviewed it regulations to determine which requirements continually improve the quality of services o some of America’s most vulnerable populations. The HCFA primary mission is to assure heath care security for millions of Medicare beneficiaries.

The HCFA also regulates all laboratory testing except research in the United States through Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments program.

On July 21st,2001, Secretary Tommy Thompson renamed the HCFA the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The CMS employs around 4,100 people, with 10 Regional Offices located throughout the United States.