The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) have issued three interim final rules to implement provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA).

The Interim Final Rules with Comment, called IFCs, are among the first resulting from passage of the health care reform legislation that was signed into law in March. Two of the IFCs were issued by HHS, with the third issued by CMS. 

The first IFC issued by HHS establishes a web portal by which individuals can access information pertaining to health insurance options available to them in their respective states. 

The second IFC implements a Temporary Early Retiree Reinsurance Program aimed at helping employment-based insurance plans to pay the cost of covering early retirees - 55 or older - that are not eligible for Medicare. Under the rule, the program would run from June 1 to at least January 1, 2014.  

CMS issued the third IFC which requires all providers of medical services that qualify for a National Provider Identifier (NPI) to include the NPI on all applications to enroll in Medicare and Medicaid, as well as any claims for payment submitted. It also requires physicians and other eligible health professionals to be enrolled in the Medicare program before ordering and referring covered items and services for Medicare beneficiaries.