Product Watch: HRDirect.com
If you are looking for a repository of human resource materials, check out www.hrdirect.com. One product might catch your eye OSHA Manager software to help you keep track of all... Read More >
Inability to find patients so refund checks can be sent
Question We are trying to refund monies to some of these patients but are unable to locate them, and or they are deceased. How do you handle patient refunds that... Read More >
5 quick tax perks: Put spouse on payroll
Gain these five tax benefits by hiring your spouse as a bona fide employee of your medical practice . Build up tax-favored funds for retirement . Shift taxable income away... Read More >
Getting down to the nitty-gritty details
Get down to the nitty-gritty details of your offer to a candidate in your offer letter. The letter should reinforce your interest in having that candidate be a member of... Read More >
CMS rescinds changes to incident-to billing rules
As reported yesterday by the Medical Group Management Association www.mgma.com On May , the Centers for Medicare amp Medicaid Services CMS announced its decision to rescind a recent transmittal on... Read More >
Billing CPT code 99211
Many coders don t realize that they can bill to report services that clinical staff other than the nurse provides. Any qualified auxillary personnel who are the physician s employees... Read More >
‘Golden Rule’ for designing your physician pay plan
Traditionally, physician compensation formulas attempted to reflect a balance between overall group strength and individual responsibility. So most plans included both productivity pay and equal pay. But life in today... Read More >
DON’T FORGET COMPLIANCE MANDATE FOR LARGE GROUPS DOING BUSINESS WITH MEDICAID
in case you forgot or didn t know, beginning January , , provider organizations and other entities that do an aggregate of more than million of business annually with Medicaid... Read More >
HIPAA: Caller ID and Facility Phone Number
From HcPro s newsletter Briefings on HIPAA nbsp Q Does HIPAA require that we block our facility s telephone numbers from appearing on Caller ID when calling patients, their families,... Read More >
NPI and claim rejections – A 4-FOLD increase
nbsp JUST IN Healthcare industry claims processors and claims-flow watchers report at least four-fold increases in rejected Medicare claims, similar or even higher rejection-rate spikes for Medicaid claims, and a... Read More >
Patient safety self-assessment helps shield practices from liability exposure
nbsp A new patient safety assessment created by the Medical Group Management Association MGMA , the Health Research and Education Trust HRET and the Institute for Safe Medication Practices ISMP... Read More >
How to optimize physician time
To find and eventually minimize wasted physician time, conduct a time motion study on each doctor s practice style. Begin with noting the start time of each identifiable doctor task.... Read More >
Jackson & Cokerโs 2008 Physician Compensation Survey
In the recent Jackson amp Coker compensation survey, of physicians believe they are underpaid Clinical skills, workload, and medical liability don t always equate with what physicians perceive as adequate... Read More >
CMS Bans Use of Physician Signature Stamps: Handwritten or Electronic Signatures Now Needed
Reprinted from REPORT ON MEDICARE COMPLIANCE, By Nina Youngstrom, Managing Editor, nyoungstrom aispub.com It appears that CMS has effectively banned the use of physician signature stamps, which means that orders,... Read More >
Doctors Start To Say ‘I’m Sorry’ Long Before ‘See You In Court’
nbsp By Kevin Sack The New York Times May , nbsp In years as a highly regarded cancer surgeon, Dr. Tapas K. Das Gupta had never made a mistake like... Read More >
Internal control ideas for accounts payable
nbsp The following are a few internal control ideas related to accounts payable administration nbsp Have only a physician sign checks. Pay by invoices, not statement, with a knowledgeable person... Read More >
Today is NPI compliance day
Today, all medical groups and other providers must submit reimbursement claims and other transactions electronic and paper to Medicare and private health insurers with National Provider Identifiers NPIs . If... Read More >
HIPAA: referral to a specialist
From HcPro s monthly newsletter Briefings on HIPAA nbsp Q When a physician from our office refers a patient to a specialist, is a signed medical release from the patient... Read More >
Could you face an IRS audit in 2008?
Well your chances certainly have increased. The payoff for the IRS? . billion in enforcement revenue, compared to . billion in and . billion in . The IRS filed .... Read More >
Conducting background checks on new employee candidates
We all know that physician practices and any other employer should conduct criminal, civil and credit checks on all potential employees in every state where it is allowed. Most services... Read More >
Treating a family member- will Medicare pay?
nbsp A provider may not bill Medicare for any service provided for or ORDERED for his or her immediate family member. You should check individual contracts to see if the... Read More >
A work mantra to live by
I was talking to my neighbor last night, catching up with what s been going on with work, etc. He works for Baker Hughes and puts in dog hours when... Read More >
Federal fraud recoveries hit new high
A million federal fraud settlement with Tenet Healthcare Corp., Dallas, helped push the U.S. Justice Department s fraud recoveries to a record . billion in the fiscal year ended Sept.... Read More >
Common omissions on your patient registration form
As you review your patient registration form, don t take anything for granted. You may be surprised to discover your form fails to ask some basics such as Emergency contact... Read More >
Payer pricing transparency: Next generation steps
Beware of broad terms about what the payer may publish, such as Provider agrees to be included in our online and paper provider listings. That used to mean your name... Read More >
Product Watch: Another Credentialing Software
Yesterday’s post suggested two managed care credentialing software products you might want to check out; here’s another – it’s called symplr: Provider Data Management Read More >
New Form for Misclassified Workers
nbsp The IRS has developed a new form for an employee who has been misclassified as Independent Contractors by an employer. Uncollected Social Security and Medicare Tax on Wages, Form... Read More >
Product Watch: Credentialing Software
Here are two credentialing products you might want to check out: OneApp Pro http://www.symed.com/products_OAP.aspx and Enroll DR http://www.enrolldr.com/Software/index.html Read More >
Simple ideas for employee retention
When you find good people, you want to keep them. Here are a few simple ideas to help retention of these good people . Handwrite a personal note telling an... Read More >
CMS Issues Clarification Regarding “Incident To” Services
From the Vinson Elkins law firm www.velaw.com On May , , in response to multiple inquiries, CMS issued a set of clarifying instructions regarding policies for services furnished incident to... Read More >
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As a top advisor to physicians, I help increase practice profits by delivering hands-on, expert medical accounting/tax support, practice counsel, and revenue-building strategies. Read More >
