Medical Office Manager

Risk management

COVID, opioids and payroll taxes on HR radar

By Mike O’Brien bio  Applicants, testing, and screening The EEOC has said you cannot test applicants for COVID-19 until after a conditional job offer. Fine, makes sense. What about taking temperatures? You can take a temperature of visitors to your business/office to make sure they are not bringing COVID-19 with them. In fact, you may have an OSHA duty to do so to protect … [Read more...] about COVID, opioids and payroll taxes on HR radar

Can my employer fire me for going to a bar or do I have any freedom left?

By Lynne Curry bio  Question: My employer sent a two-part email to every employee last week. “As you know we’ve had a local spike in COVID-19 infections. The health department has provided a list of the establishments, primarily bars, where COVID-19 individuals spent extended time. The health department asks that anyone who was in these businesses during these times monitor … [Read more...] about Can my employer fire me for going to a bar or do I have any freedom left?

Tool: Model COVID-19 Contact Log Sheet

Maintaining social distancing will be the price that medical offices and other businesses will have to pay to reopen and remain open until the COVID-19 threat goes away. But for social distancing to work, there must be a way to track and analyze actual encounters between people at your facility. One simple way to gather the essential data is to have employees and visitors … [Read more...] about Tool: Model COVID-19 Contact Log Sheet

Feds say insurers not required to pay for employer return to work COVID-19 testing

Since the public health emergency began, the US government has taken the position that insurers shouldn’t be allowed to make consumers pay for COVID-19 lab tests. But now comes news that insurers will not be put in that same position with regard to return to work screening conducted on employees by their employers. FFCRA rules for COVID-19 test payment The key piece of … [Read more...] about Feds say insurers not required to pay for employer return to work COVID-19 testing

Practical guidance for medical office employers handling coronavirus

By Paul Edwards bio We know there is a lot of information (and misinformation) out there about the coronavirus (COVID-19) and how to handle it in the workplace. Our goal is to provide you with guidance on how to handle this as an employer—practical solutions for the impact the coronavirus may have on your business. If an employee is sick, can I send him/her home? If an … [Read more...] about Practical guidance for medical office employers handling coronavirus

Feds Take Down $2.1 Billion Medicare Genetic Test Fraud Scheme

You know that a branch of lab testing has gone from fad to mainstream when it becomes the subject of a major federal enforcement takedown. Accordingly, the newly announced breakup of a $2.1 billion genetic billing fraud scam, one of the largest Medicare frauds ever undertaken, signifies that genetic testing has officially arrived. Operation Double Helix Known as Operation … [Read more...] about Feds Take Down $2.1 Billion Medicare Genetic Test Fraud Scheme

Better productivity and a happier staff happen as ergonomics steps in

Ergonomics is good economics. When the work areas are in sync with the people spending their days in them, there’s no time lost to sick days and no money lost to low productivity, says Hayley Kaye, a certified professional ergonomist with HLK Consulting in New York City. Achieving that calls for attention to the desks, the telephones, and the chairs. But it also calls for … [Read more...] about Better productivity and a happier staff happen as ergonomics steps in

Six steps to prepare for an active shooter event in the workplace

Active shooter events are devastating and unpredictable, says Melissa Gonzalez Boyce, a legal editor for XpertHR. She also points out that, unfortunately, the frequency of these incidents has increased, and often occur in a place of business. "Due to recent events, I believe more organizations are seeing the need for policies to prepare their employees for such an … [Read more...] about Six steps to prepare for an active shooter event in the workplace

How your staff can help prevent costly malpractice lawsuits

Doctors aren't the only ones who cause malpractice claims. Staff can cause them too by the way they treat the patients and by the way they do their jobs. It's not the clinical mishap that most often causes a patient to see a lawyer. Many patients sue because they are dissatisfied or because there is a lack of communication. To a great extent it is not the physicians but the … [Read more...] about How your staff can help prevent costly malpractice lawsuits