Practices that may have thought they were safe from Medicare payment penalties next year could be in for an unpleasant surprise if they don't take action now.

Problems with how the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has been collecting and analyzing data related to the Physician Quality Reporting System (PQRS) and the value-based payment modifier are leading to inappropriate penalties of 2-4 percent of Medicare payments for thousands of physicians.

How to avoid the penalty: File an informal review request with CMS before midnight Eastern time Dec. 16. CMS has said it will verify incentive eligibility and payment adjustment determinations for practices that file such a request.

Additional information about the process and contact information for questions is available in CMS' informal review fact sheet.

Note: CMS has said the informal review system will be down Dec. 3-7 and unable to accept requests during that time.