Category: Blog

COVID-19 Patient Data Reporting

New HHS COVID-19 Reporting Rules Meant ‘Chaos’ For Hospitals

Many health systems had just two days to expand or overhaul their COVID-19 patient-data-reporting practices, according to leaders from more than 10 state hospital associations. A flurry of controversy erupted this past week following the publicization of a Trump administration directive to hospitals to bypass the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention when reporting COVID-19 […]
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2021 ICD-10-CM Guidelines

2021 ICD-10-CM Guidelines Clarify Reporting of COVID-19 Manifestations

  Coders should note that the temporary guidelines will expire September 30. CMS released the 2021 ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines for Coding and Reporting on July 8, several weeks earlier than usual. The coding guidelines, which take effect October 1, include new instructions for reporting manifestations of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), among other changes. The guidelines include a new […]
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Value based Reimbursement

Value-Based Incentives Didn’t Reduce Hospital-Acquired Infections

  Value-based incentive programs in Medicare did not improve hospital-acquired infection rates and may have disproportionately penalized safety-net hospitals, a recent study shows. Two of Medicare’s value-based incentive programs did not improve the levels or trends of certain hospital-acquired infections, potentially widening the gap between safety-net and non-safety-net hospitals, according to a recent study out of Boston […]
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AI difference in Healthcare

The AI Difference in Revenue Cycle Management

Effective Revenue Cycle Management (RCM) is non-negotiable for all health care practices, but despite this, clinics across the board are reporting increasing levels of dissatisfaction with their current RCM tools. According to a 2019 KLAS report, more than one-third of the 140 respondents to their RCM survey said they wouldn’t purchase their vendor’s services again, […]
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2020 HIPAA Changes

How a Pandemic Impacts HIPAA Requirements

As healthcare business professionals, we have been trained in the importance of following HIPAA privacy and security requirements. As coders, auditors, and health information services professionals we are bound by the HITECH Act of 2009, which outlines the responsibilities of “business associates” with respect to HIPAA requirements. As business associates, we are required to “appropriately […]
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2021 ICD-10-CM Codes

FY21 ICD-10-CM – More Than Codes

The FY21 ICD-10-CM codes were released by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on July 1, 2020.  The new and updated diagnosis codes are another part of the preparation for FY21 which begins on October 1, 2020. The final codes were very similar to the diagnosis codes that were released earlier this year. […]
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