The organization is concerned about policies in the 2022 Physician Fee Schedule proposed rule, ranging from telehealth worries to apprehension about MIPS. The AHA agreed with certain aspects of the rule but also voiced various problems and recommendations for CMS to consider. The AHA opposed several telehealth policies that CMS included in the rule. The […]
SCAN Health Plan will offer its senior-first Medicare Advantage Plans in 17 markets across three states starting in 2022. SCAN currently provides senior-focused Medicare Advantage plans to 220,000 Californians and aims to reach even more seniors by extending its offerings to Alameda and San Mateo counties. The payer had not offered plans in states other […]
It’s more important than ever for revenue cycle leaders to think seriously about succession planning as baby boomers begin to retire and the revenue cycle increasingly requires more specialized skills, says PeaceHealth’s senior enterprise director of HIM, coding, and CDI. “Everyone’s replaceable,” says Cassi Birnbaum, senior enterprise director of HIM, coding, and CDI at PeaceHealth […]
The administration said it would make the results of its drug price negotiations with manufacturers, as well as its approach to value-based care models, open to a variety of payers. The Biden administration Thursday released its plan to reduce prescription drug prices, which would include the use of models to test value-based payments in Medicare […]
Payers can reduce surgical costs by 59 percent by shifting eligible members from the hospital outpatient setting to ambulatory surgery centers. Ambulatory surgery centers are care sites that offer surgical procedures, diagnostics, and preventive care services, according to the Ambulatory Surgery Center Association. These sites are not provider offices, rural healthcare clinics, or urgent or […]
As the revenue cycle of the future becomes more automated and technology takes over rote tasks, revenue cycle employees need more complicated problem-solving skills and a deeper knowledge base than ever before. Technology is only as good as the data that’s fed into it, and the data is only as good as the people behind […]
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a policy change modification to the claims processing logic for Modifier 59 Distinct procedural service (and the optional patient-relationship modifiers XE, XS, XP, and XU) on February 15, 2019. These modifiers are only processed when applied to the Column 2 code in a bundled pair, per Correct Coding Initiative […]
Controversy continues to swirl around this subject. A recent article of mine focused on the argument that Medicare Advantage (MA) plans have to follow the two-midnight rule. It certainly generated buzz; I received a number of emails with comments and questions. First, I want to note that I love getting comments and questions. I can’t […]
Undercoding, or reporting a lesser service than was performed and documented, is sometimes employed as a defensive strategy to stave off claims denials or audits. But, undercoding can make a provider an outlier, and may create consequential patient care, compliance, and financial liabilities. For example: Undercoding Leaves Money On The Table, Driving Down Provider Reimbursement […]
As providers engage in complex payment models and collect more from patients, they must learn to automate key functions to improve healthcare revenue efficiency. The healthcare revenue cycle has many moving parts. From patient access and registration to medical billing and coding, provider organizations of all sizes must achieve revenue cycle efficiency to ensure providers […]