By Dr. Steve M. Cohen In dealing with your office staff, allegations of wrongdoing are never something you can ignore. Whether the charge involves sexual or racial harassment, bullying or something else, they must never be ignored. Never. Remember, an allegation by itself is neither fact nor fiction. It is simply a statement made by someone within your organization. In many … [Read more...] about Workplace accusations mean it’s time to investigate
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How to use Modifier 24 and 25
By Aimee Wilcox, MA, CST, CCS-P Modifier 24 is reported as follows: Append only to Evaluation and Management (EM) codes. Use only to report an EM service beginning the day after a procedure performed by the same physician during the past 10 or 90 postoperative days. The patient's record must document that the EM service was solely for the treatment of an underlying condition … [Read more...] about How to use Modifier 24 and 25
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
What you need to know about medical marijuana
With medical marijuana now legal in 20 states and Washington, D.C., and legislation pending in 13 other states*, medicinal use of cannabis has very much become a national issue – and of course it's an issue with numerous implications for medical practices and the people who manage them. Richard F. Comenzo is a Massachusetts attorney specializing in medical marijuana laws. His … [Read more...] about What you need to know about medical marijuana
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
Indiana office uses billboards and TV to bring in a flood of new patients
An Indiana practice is seeing a significant number of new patients from a billboard and a TV commercial. It's money well spent, says Laurie Streib, administrator of Gastroenterology of Southern Indiana, an eight-physician, 43-staff practice in New Albany, IN. And getting the advertising going has been amazingly easy – the billboard company designed the sign and the television … [Read more...] about Indiana office uses billboards and TV to bring in a flood of new patients
How the Affordable Care Act affects your medical office policies and practices
You’ve heard a lot of talk about Obamacare, officially known as the Affordable Care Act (ACA). There are a lot of changes for healthcare delivery that affect medical offices. But are you up to date on how ACA affects your office as an employer? The ACA imposes new obligations on employers. Some of these are already in effect and are continuing obligations you should be … [Read more...] about How the Affordable Care Act affects your medical office policies and practices
New York OB/GYN practice discovers 2 astonishingly easy ways to pull in more patients
A one-physician OB/GYN practice that opened in the last decade reached its patient census goals almost immediately using nothing but common-sense marketing. It became so busy, in fact, that it is now open an additional two nights a week plus Saturday mornings. The marketing has focused on two elements. First is no waiting. “We’ve had patients transfer here just because they … [Read more...] about New York OB/GYN practice discovers 2 astonishingly easy ways to pull in more patients
Government issues NEW resources to help ensure safety of electronic health records
Continuing to encourage the use of electronic health records, on January 15, 2014, HHS issued new resources to help providers address Electronic Health Record safety. HHS’s Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) issued the Safety Assurance Factors for EHR Resilience (SAFER) Guides. These SAFER Guides are tools such as checklists and … [Read more...] about Government issues NEW resources to help ensure safety of electronic health records
HIPAA resources and guidance
Complying with HIPAA’s privacy and security requirements can be complex and overwhelming. But the Department of Health and Human Services does provide some helpful guidance. Here’s a list of resources we found that might help you understand what’s required and plan your security programs: 1. HHS Security Rule … [Read more...] about HIPAA resources and guidance