By Brent Warrington bio Medical practice profitability is a regular concern for practice managers. Now the Affordable Care Act has perhaps shined a brighter light on what it takes to stay in the black. What's more, insurance companies are under pressure to manage costs and grow revenue, sometimes resulting in lower payments to physicians for patient visits, services, … [Read more...] about How the right payment technology can improve profitability at your practice
Billing & collections
3 technologies that improve patient collections
By Cheryl Toth, MBA bio "Don't worry, you don't need to pay us today…we'll bill you after insurance pays." This is music to patients' ears. It means they can receive services, treatments, and/or tests in your office, and leave without paying for them. Months later when the bill arrives, it will be easy for them to set it aside. Because (probably) no one is going to call and … [Read more...] about 3 technologies that improve patient collections
How the new OIG 2014 Work Plan affects your medical office
The OIG, Office of Inspector General, oversees Medicare and Medicaid enforcement and highlights areas of focus in its enforcement efforts in a Work Plan. The 2014 Work Plan was released at the end of January and contains some items of note for medical practices. Some items are new and others have been on the OIG Work Plan in prior years and are a continuing project. The … [Read more...] about How the new OIG 2014 Work Plan affects your medical office
Model Tool: Links for more on Office of the Investigator General Workplan
Why you need this list of links: The OIG, Office of Inspector General, oversees Medicare and Medicaid enforcement and highlights areas of focus in its enforcement efforts in a Workplan. The 2014 Workplan was released at the end of January and contains some items of note for medical practices. How this list of links helps you: Some items are new and others have been on the OIG … [Read more...] about Model Tool: Links for more on Office of the Investigator General Workplan
Get ready now for critical ICD-10 deadline
ICD-10 takes effect October 1, 2015, which doesn’t leave much time to prepare – especially when you consider the dramatic impact the new code sets will have on medical offices from the standpoint of staffing, training, and, perhaps most significant of all, financial management. Many physician practices have not started down the ICD-10 path, says Ira Shapiro, CEO of The … [Read more...] about Get ready now for critical ICD-10 deadline
Don’t let the office get caught in Medicare’s pay cuts
e-scripting, EHRs, and value modifiers Medicare has been offering a lot of incentives for technology use and quality measures. But those same incentives have their dark side – payment cuts for noncompliance. Here are the three cuts to be dodging right now. And along with them is the unavoidable 2% cut brought about by sequestration. #1: the 2% cut on e-scripting Most imminent … [Read more...] about Don’t let the office get caught in Medicare’s pay cuts
E/M transitional care: Q&A on how to code it and get the payments in
Here is a bit of Q&A on the new E/M transitional care codes 99495 and 99496. These codes cover care coordination during the 30 days after discharge from a hospital or skilled nursing facility, and they include communicating with the patient or caregiver, reviewing the medication, and coordinating the care with other providers and with community services. They also require … [Read more...] about E/M transitional care: Q&A on how to code it and get the payments in
Sequestration: another 2% cut on doctors’ payments
Sequestration. It began March 1, 2013. And it is hitting doctors’ payments by 2%. As to what managers need to do to meet the payment reductions, the financial experts are all advising essentially the same things: get the copays and deductibles up front, and set up a credit-card-on-file for as many patients as possible. The sequester specifics are these: The 2% … [Read more...] about Sequestration: another 2% cut on doctors’ payments
Analyzing CPT’s updates from radiology to the end
By Therese M. Jorwic, MPH, RHIA, CCS, CCS-P In the past two issues, we covered CPT’s changes to the E/M codes and the surgery codes. Here now are the rest of the changes. They start with radiology and end with the Category III codes. Radiology There are five newcomers here, all for nuclear medicine. They begin with thyroid studies (78012-78014). The first is for thyroid … [Read more...] about Analyzing CPT’s updates from radiology to the end
Keep safe from the Recovery Audit Contractors and the courts by making the corrections correctly
What flaws are the Recovery Audit Contractors searching for in records? Illegible documentation, incomplete documentation, unidentified providers, wrong dates of service – and evidence of improper corrections. To help offices stay safe, the government has set out guides for making corrections so the records pass muster with the RACs. Those same guides will also ensure the … [Read more...] about Keep safe from the Recovery Audit Contractors and the courts by making the corrections correctly